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St Blaise - patron saint of the throat

In a previous article, we looked at some interesting legends surrounding patron saints of the ear and hearing [1]. As we celebrate the Feast Day of St Blaise of Sebastia on 3 February, we hear some fascinating tales and myths...

EEG as a measure of neuroplasticity in children

Measuring changes in neural activity can teach us a lot about hearing loss and the effect of gained functional hearing. In this article, the authors describe how electroencephalography (EEG) is being used to effectively measure such changes in children with...

What you need to know about recent advances in genetics of hearing loss in the newborn

Identifying the underlying genetic cause of hearing loss in newborns can improve dramatically the early diagnosis and appropriate intervention. Hearing loss is the most common sensory disorder at birth, affecting approximately two out of 1000 newborns [1]. Congenital impaired hearing...

St Æbbe the Younger of Coldingham, patron saint of the nose

Stories of the saints are often rather dark and unpleasant – and this is certainly the case with St Æbbe, as we hear from our roving historian, John Riddington Young. In two previous articles, we have discovered the fascinating stories...

Genomic testing for deafness and its implications

Gene therapies for hearing loss are rapidly advancing and will be transitioning to clinical practice. Here, the authors explain why clinicians involved in managing these disorders need to be aware of these advances. Genomic testing in England was significantly reconfigured...

Mind the gap – developing a sustainable pipeline for hearing therapeutics

In this article, the authors describe three key challenges faced in developing hearing therapeutics. Collaboration between companies, sectors and disciplines will be key to finding solutions. The unmet need for therapies for hearing loss grows apace, with prevalence rising across...

Cochlear implant referral: how can we do better?

Considerable progress has been made over the last few years in improving access to cochlear implantation (CI) in the UK for children and adults with severe to profound deafness. But we are still not treating children early enough, and we...

Dizziness: confusion, issues and considerations

Douglas L Beck gives his unique take on the difficulties involved in diagnosing dizzy patients and the importance of well-founded research acting as the basis for any diagnosis and treatment decisions. Dizziness. Uh-oh. We really have a very limited understanding...

Plasticity with cochlear implants: individual factors in the outcomes

Andrej Kral gives us an overview of neuronal plasticity in congenital hearing loss, and discusses why it is core to our clinical interventions in hearing loss and rehabilitation. The brain is born immature and undergoes extensive shaping during early development....