UN reports more people than ever have hearing loss that can be improved or treated

More than 360 million people have disabling hearing loss, according to new global estimates released by the United Nations World Health Organization (WHO), which adds that production of hearing aids is not keeping up with the urgent demand. Another 32 million people affected by hearing loss are children under the age of 15. Many of whom live in low- and middle-income countries – particularly in South Asia, Asia and the Pacific and sub-Saharan Africa – where untreated ear infections lead to hearing loss.

Link: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=44245&Cr=health&Cr1=#.US-jVjCsh8E

Forerunners of Inner Ear Cells That Enable Hearing Identified

Researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine have identified a group of progenitor cells in the inner ear that can become the sensory hair cells and adjacent supporting cells that enable hearing.

Link: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226081234.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Fhealth_medicine%2Fhearing_loss+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Health+%26+Medicine+News+--+Hearing+Loss%29

Mediclinic City Hospital and hearLIFE Clinic announce partnership to treat hearing loss in Dubai

Mediclinic City Hospital and hearLIFE Clinic, both in Dubai Healthcare City, have formed a unique alliance to provide the most advanced services in the treatment of hearing loss. The hearLIFE Clinic is the first clinic in the Middle East purely dedicated to the treatment of hearing loss, and their services include state-of-the-art cochlear implants.

Link: http://www.ameinfo.com/mediclinic-city-hospital-hearlife-clinic-announce-330136

Imaging technique offers look inside hearing loss

For the first time, researchers have snapped pictures of mouse inner ear cells using an approach that doesn’t damage tissue or require elaborate dyes. The approach could offer a way to investigate hearing loss — the most common sensory deficit in the world — and may help guide the placement of cochlear devices or other implants.

Link: http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/348394/description/Imaging_technique_offers_look_inside_hearing_loss

The February edition of Probes and Tips is now available: ABCs of Hearing & Hearing Loss

The February edition of Probes and Tips is now available:  ABCs of Hearing & Hearing Loss.
This edition includes such items as:

  • A highlight of the Hearing Loss in Young Children webinar (45 mins.) that covers topics, such as:
  1. Anatomy of the ear
  2. Types/Degrees of hearing loss
  3. Simulation of a hearing loss
  4. Roles of Early Head Start staff
  • You  can watch the webinar at your convenience and pass the link along to others who could benefit from it.

Link: http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs154/1102782899287/archive/1112338439675.html

New way to test hearing loss drugs in people

Researchers at the University of Florida have figured out the longstanding problem of how to safely create temporary, reversible hearing loss in order to see how well new drugs work. “There’s a real need for drug solutions to hearing loss,” says lead investigator Colleen Le Prell, an associate professor in the department of speech, language, and hearing sciences.

About 26 million American adults have noise-induced hearing loss, according to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders. Prevention is key because damage to hearing-related hair cells in the inner ear by loud noise is irreversible.

Link: http://www.futurity.org/health-medicine/new-way-to-test-hearing-loss-drugs-in-people/

Researchers Develop Rx for Deafness and Impaired Balance in Mouse Model of Usher Syndrome

Researchers report that hearing and balance can be rescued by a new therapy in a mouse model of Usher syndrome that contains the mutation responsible for type 1C Usher. The results provide the first evidence that congenital deafness can be effectively overcome by treatment early in development to correct gene expression. Read the article to find out more.

Link: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130204153903.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Fhealth_medicine%2Fhearing_loss+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Health+%26+Medicine+News+--+Hearing+Loss%29