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Questionnaires to measure tinnitus severity

The handicap associated with tinnitus can arise from any combination of stress, anxiety, depression, emotional distress, insomnia, difficulties concentrating, or impairments in quality of life or everyday functioning. Measuring such handicap and determining clinical need is therefore far from trivial....

Inter-professional teamwork and hearing care for older adults with cognitive loss

There is growing awareness that hearing loss is linked to dementia [1]. The average first-time hearing aid user is about 70 years old. By this age, approximately 1 in 2 people have hearing loss and 1 in 7 have cognitive...

Screening: evaluating the outcomes of early intervention

Newborn hearing screening is now the accepted standard of care in several countries, and is becoming increasingly more established worldwide. White [1] reported eight countries screening over 90% of newborns, ten screening between 25-89% of births and a further 54...

Three is not a crowd! Involving family members in audiology appointments

Family members currently have minimal involvement in the appointment. Image by Caitlin Grenness. Hearing loss in older adults not only affects the patients themselves, but also their family members. This article outlines the findings of recent research into how family...

Database WG2. The Tinnitus Patient Database in the TINNET COST Action BM1306

Berthold Langguth describes an innovative project that is creating the world’s largest multi-national patient database containing standardised information on tinnitus and medical history, otological examination and psycho-acoustic measures of tinnitus. A challenge for tinnitus treatment and tinnitus research is the...

The challenge of disrupting the hearing care market in the USA

Barry Freeman, an Audiology Consultant of extensive global experience, examines the business model of hearing care service delivery in America. He discusses the challenges the profession has faced, and proposes some food for thought on learning from other health care...

The mounting burden of hearing loss worldwide: gearing up global collaboration

As audiology and ENT professionals we all have an inkling about the prevalence and impact of hearing loss, but the true gravity of the situation is even greater than previously thought… It may seem hard to believe, but in the...

Family-centred early intervention: supporting a call to action

Family-centred care for young children is a commonly used but frequently under-appreciated approach in audiology. Prof Moodie discusses how we can take positive action to improve our approach to families in ways that make a meaningful difference in their lives....

Targeted CMV screening and hearing management of children with congenital cytomegalovirus infection

Congenital cytomegalovirus (cCMV) infection is a common congenital infection and is the leading infectious cause of sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) in children. Prof Karen Fowler discusses current research and the exciting future of screening for cCMV in newborns. Figure 1....

Enhancing and extending hearing care using Ida Telecare

Tele-audiology has been on our radar for a long while, and evidence shows that its application in clinical practice is beneficial to both patients and clinicians. Cherilee Rutherford discusses the benefits and gives an overview of the freely-available tools developed...

Psychogenic vestibular disorders: understanding and management

‘Psychogenic vestibular disorders’, also known as ‘functional vertigo and dizziness’, are common causes of dizziness and balance difficulty. Although our understanding of their underlying pathophysiology remains incomplete, Drs Diego Kaski and Amy Edwards outline how early identification and positive diagnosis...

Hearing care systems in Europe – can we do more?

52 million Europeans experience hearing loss but many don’t find their way to professional hearing care. Lidia Best looks at strategies to improve the uptake of amplification at a national level [1]. With rising numbers of people experiencing hearing loss,...