This Week in Hearing

By This Week in HearingHealth & Fitness

This Week in Hearing episodes

September 20, 2023 168 - Earzz: Enhancing Accessibility and Safety Through Sound
This week, host Amyn Amlani introduces us to Earzz, an innovative sound recognition device and monitoring system. He is joined by the founder of Earzz, Prad Thiruvenkatanathan, who sheds light on the technology's unique capabilities and its potential impact for those with hearing loss.
Unlike most other hearing-related technologies that focus on speech or speech in noise, Earzz specializes in recognizing non-speech stimuli. It offers a fresh perspective on sound monitoring, enabling users to customize their alerts for various sounds, from doorbells to water leaks, making it a useful tool for both individuals with hearing loss and those with normal hearing.
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30 min
September 19, 2023 167 - Mighty Mila: Children's Book Series Helping Redefine Hearing Loss Narratives
This week, host Shari Eberts talks with Katie Petruzziello, the author of "Mighty Mila," a children's book that celebrates the adventures of a young girl with cochlear implants. Unlike many traditional hearing loss books, Mighty Mila focuses on showcasing children's abilities and adventures, regardless of their hearing abilities.
Katie shares her family's hearing loss journey and the inspiration behind the book, emphasizing the importance of representation and awareness. She also discusses how parents and educators can use the book as a tool to foster vocabulary, listening skills, and communication while breaking down the stigma around hearing loss. Additionally, Katie announces the upcoming release of her second book in the Mighty Mila series, "Mighty Mila Dream Job," and her book donation program to support children with hearing loss.
Learn more at https://www.mightymila.com/
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24 min
September 12, 2023 166 - How MindMics is Transforming Earbuds into Acoustic Health Sensors
While previous attempts to incorporate health sensors in earbuds faced challenges like comfort, battery drain, and a lack of compelling use cases, there are ongoing developments to overcome these issues. One company, MindMics, has developed technology that allows users to monitor heart rate and other health characteristics acoustically, using the ear canal as a microphone. Dr. Anna Barnacka, the founder and CEO of MindMics, explains that their technology utilizes sound waves generated by the body to provide insights into health, making it a non-invasive and promising method for health monitoring.
MindMics leverages the existing microphones in earbuds, including those used for active noise cancellation (ANC), to capture these sound waves below 20 Hz. This approach eliminates the need for additional sensors and ensures that users can simultaneously listen to audio while monitoring their health.
For more information on MindMics technology, visit their website here: https://www.mindmics.com/
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34 min
September 07, 2023 165 - Making Informed Decisions: How NALguide is Helping Demystify Hearing Aid Technology for Consumers
This week, host Dave Kemp is joined by two distinguished researchers from the National Acoustics Laboratory (NAL) in Australia. Dr. Padraig Kittrick and Dr. Paola Incerti, discuss their work on developing the NALguide, a new tool designed to demystify hearing aid technology and features for consumers.
The NALguide is the result of a collaborative effort involving engineers, audiologists, and behavioral insights specialists. It is designed to be brand-agnostic, ensuring that consumers can navigate the world of hearing technology without being overwhelmed by technical jargon or manufacturer-specific terms.
The resource offers consumers a high-level understanding of key features and also allows those with a deeper interest to explore further details through a QR code.
Check out the NALguide here: https://www.nal.gov.au/nal_products/nalguide-hearing-aid-features-explained/
Be sure to subscribe to our channel for the latest episodes each week and follow This Week in Hearing on LinkedIn and Twitter.
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37 min
September 04, 2023 164 - Pioneering Efforts to Provide Affordable and Accessible Hearing Care on a Global Scale
This week Andy Bellavia is joined by Deaftronics co-founder, Tendekayi Katsiga, and Georgia Tech professor, Dr. Saad Bhamla, to discuss their respective projects aimed at addressing the global crisis of hearing loss.
Deaftronics, based in Botswana, designs and manufactures affordable hearing aids that utilize solar power, while promoting awareness and accessibility to hearing care solutions, particularly in low-resource and underserved communities.
Dr. Bhamla and his lab have been working towards creating a $1 hearing aid and he discusses the challenges involved in developing a functional, but extremely low-cost hearing device.
For more information on these projects visit:
* Deaftronics: https://deaftronics.com
* Saad Bhalma's lab: https://bhamla.gatech.edu
**Future of Hearing Healthcare Panel Discussion: Ear and Hearing Care for All: We Can Make It Happen: https://youtu.be/Sxvk_lJQcrE
Research articles mentioned in this discussion:
* LoCHAid: An ultra-low-cost hearing aid for age-related hearing loss: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0238922
*Comparing outcomes of ultra-low-cost hearing aids to programmable, refurbished hearing aids for adults with high frequency hearing loss in Malawi: a feasibility study: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fresc.2023.1153056/full
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45 min
August 29, 2023 163 - Hearing Loss, Fatigue, and Cognitive Well-Being: A Closer Look at the Latest Research
This week, host Andy Bellavia is joined by two researchers from the Cochlear Center for Hearing and Public Health at Johns Hopkins University. Nicholas Reed, AuD, and Kening Jiang, MHS, discuss their research into the complex relationships between hearing loss, fatigue, sleep disturbances, and cognitive decline.
Kening Jiang discusses her study on the connection between hearing loss and self-reported fatigue, exploring future research possibilities including the impact of addressing hearing loss on fatigue. The pair emphasize the need to understand individual factors and interactions contributing to cognitive health in the complex relationship between hearing loss and fatigue.
References:
* Sleep Characteristics and Hearing Loss in Older Adults: The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2005–2006 https://academic.oup.com/biomedgerontology/article/77/3/632/6327644)
*Associations of sleep characteristics in late midlife with late-life hearing loss in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities-Sleep Heart Health Study (ARIC-SHHS) https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S235272182300133X)
* Hearing Loss and Fatigue in Middle-Aged and Older Adults https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamaotolaryngology/article-abstract/2806828)
More information about the research taking place at the Cochlear Center can be found here: https://jhucochlearcenter.org/
Be sure to subscribe to our channel for the latest episodes each week and follow This Week in Hearing on LinkedIn and Twitter.
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25 min
August 24, 2023 162 - Audiologists Bring Vital Hearing and Balance Care to Ukrainian Refugees in Poland
This week, Dave Kemp is joined by Dr. Daniel Romero and Dr. King Chun, to discuss their experience as part of a humanitarian mission to Poland working with Ukrainian refugees. Along with students and translators, they were able to provide essential audiological services, including hearing assessments, hearing aid fittings and vestibular evaluations and treatment.
Looking ahead, they plan to continue their mission by returning to Poland in November to provide follow-up care and expand their services to children with special needs.
Be sure to subscribe to our channel for the latest episodes each week and follow This Week in Hearing on LinkedIn and Twitter.
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38 min
August 17, 2023 161 - Hearing Aid Use Lowers Fall Risk: Interview with Laura Campos, AuD, PhD
Falls are one of the costliest mishaps affecting older adults, and there is evidence suggesting a link between age-related hearing loss and falling. Dr. Laura Campos, a clinical audiologist at the University of Colorado, recently joined Brian Taylor to discuss her study's focus on hearing aid usage and the potential for reduced fall risk in older adults. The research revealed that individuals with hearing loss face a 2.4 times higher risk of experiencing falls compared to their normal-hearing counterparts. Dr. Campos and her team investigated whether hearing aid use could mitigate this risk.
The study findings demonstrated that individuals who consistently wore hearing aids, particularly for at least four hours a day, exhibited a significantly lower likelihood of experiencing falls. While the study couldn't establish causality, it underscored a strong association between consistent hearing aid usage and reduced fall risk. Dr. Campos emphasized that incorporating discussions about the potential link between hearing loss, cognitive decline, and falls into clinical practice could offer valuable insights for clinicians. She also highlighted the need for further research to uncover the underlying mechanisms driving these associations and the potential for using objective outcome measures to track the impact of hearing aid usage on fall risk over time.
Reference:
Campos, L., Prochazka, A., Anderson, M., Kaizer, A., Foster, C., & Hullar, T. (2023). Consistent hearing aid use is associated with lower fall prevalence and risk in older adults with hearing loss. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 10.1111/jgs.18461. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/jgs.18461
Link: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37314100/
Be sure to subscribe to our channel for the latest episodes each week and follow This Week in Hearing on LinkedIn and Twitter.
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19 min
August 08, 2023 160 - Pioneering Online Hearing Care: Interview with Audicus CEO, Patrick Freuler
This week, Amyn Amlani sits down with Audicus founder and CEO, Patrick Freuler, to discuss direct to consumer hearing care. His company, Audicus, has been providing hearing aids direct to consumers for over 10 years.
They discuss how Patrick's background in engineering and healthcare led to the creation of Audicus, and how the company has evolved over the past decade, including its innovative subscription approach to make hearing aids more affordable and accessible.
Be sure to subscribe to our channel for the latest episodes each week and follow This Week in Hearing on LinkedIn and Twitter.
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31 min
August 02, 2023159 - Understanding Hearing Difficulty in Adults with Normal Audiograms: Insights from Christina Roup, PhD
This week, Brian Taylor welcomes Professor Christina Roup from The Ohio State University to discuss adults with normal audiograms and self-reported hearing difficulty. The prevalence of this condition is estimated to be around 12-15% in younger and middle-aged adults, with a higher prevalence in older age groups and those with a history of traumatic brain injury.
Dr. Rouf reviews some of the latest research on this topic and how it can inform clinicians who work with this population. She also presents insights from her research, where she found that amplification with mild gain hearing aids significantly improved speech-in-noise performance for adults with normal audiograms and self-reported hearing difficulties.
She encourages clinicians to listen to their patients' complaints and take them seriously, using speech-in-noise tests as a routine part of their clinical battery to provide appropriate treatment options.
Studies mentioned in this interview:
Beck, D, & Danhauer, J.L. (2019). Amplification for adults with hearing difficulty, speech in noise problems – and normal thresholds. Journal of Otolaryngology-ENT Research, 22(1), 84-88.

Cameron, S. & Dillon, H. (2007). Development of the Listening in Spatialized Noise- Sentences test (LiSN-S). Ear and Hearing, 28(2), 196-211.

Helfer, K. S., & Jesse, A. (2021). Hearing and speech processing in midlife. Hearing Research, 402, 108097.

Helfer, K.S., & Vargo, M. (2009). Speech recognition and temporal processing in middle-aged women. Journal of the American Academy of Audiology, 20, 264-271. DOI: 10.3766/jaaa.20.4.6

Roup, C.M., Custer, A., & Powell, J. (2021). The relationship between, self-perceived hearing ability and binaural speech-in-noise performance in adults with normal pure-tone hearing. Perspectives of the ASHA Special Interest Groups, 1-12.

Roup, C.M., Post, E., & Lewis, J. (2018). Mild-gain hearing aids as a treatment for adults with self-reported hearing difficulties. Journal of the American Academy of Audiology, 29, 477-94.

Spankovich, C., Gonzalez, V. B., Su, D., & Bishop, C. E. (2018). Self reported hearing difficulty, tinnitus, and normal audiometric thresholds, the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1999-2002. Hearing Research, 358, 30-36. DOI: 10.1016/j.heares.2017.12.001

Tremblay, K., Pinto, A., Fischer, M.E., Klein, B. E. K., Klein, R., Levy, S. . . . Cruickshanks, K. J. (2015). Self-reported hearing difficulties among adults with normal audiograms: The Beaver Dam Offspring Study. Ear and Hearing, 36(6), e290-e299. DOI: 10.1097/AUD.0000000000000195

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24 min

About This Week in Hearing

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The place where subject matter experts across the "World of Hearing" come together to discuss all things hearing health, hearing aids, hearables, consumer audio, and everything in-between.