Hearing News Watch

Writing last week on Hearing Views, Sara Bloom, who covered the hearing aid industry from the early 1990s through 2010, made this observation: “The hearing care industry was flat for as long as I was writing about it. For all those 17 years, I would write that only about 25% of those who would benefit from hearing help did, in

JUNCTION, IL–How many audiologists are able to dunk a basketball? While a search of the Internet fails to yield an answer, the odds are that the number is in the single digits. However, if things go according to Andrew Drone’s plans, that number may rise by 1. The dunking part is easy for Drone, who is a 6-foot-11, 265-pound, second-team

SOUTHAMPTON, UK—In China, the world’s most populous country, an estimated 10% or more of its 1.35 billion people suffer from hearing loss.  Yet, only about 1% of them wear hearing aids. Despite the enormous growth in its economy, China remains largely a developing nation in which hearing care is a luxury available to only a small minority. However, the University

WASHINGTON, DC–Mary Jane Ambrose Postove, a pioneers of American audiology, died at her home here on June 15 at the age of 93. Born in Dunkirk, NY, to Lillian Promenschenkel Ambrose and Thomas Patrick Ambrose, she received her master’s degree in audiology from the State University of New York at Fredonia, then earned a master of arts from the University

ROCKVILLE, MD–With an eye to the upcoming Fourth of July celebrations, the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) issued an advisory this week to Americans everywhere to protect their hearing from exposure to Independence Day’s traditional fireworks displays. ASHA warned that the noise from exploding fireworks can reach 155 dB– louder than a military jet taking off. As a result, spectators anywhere close

COPENHAGEN—Living close to a busy city street or highway has various drawbacks. The constant traffic noise is annoying and may also pose a threat to one’s hearing. But recently, a group of European scientists, led by Mette Sørensen of the Institute of Cancer Epidemiology in Copenhagen, has reported that long-term exposure to the noise of road traffic is associated with

MARYVILLE, TN—Only rarely are hearing aids the subject of political campaigns. However, Tennessee’s recently enacted policy of requiring health insurance companies to cover hearing aids for children has led to charges and countercharges from the two candidates for the Republican nomination for state senator in Tennessee’s 2nd District. Scott Hughes, who is challenging the incumbent, Sen. Doug Overbey, asserted on

OWOSSO, MI–The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) and Indian Trails, Inc., have teamed up to install induction loops, also known as hearing loops, on a fleet of 17 motor coaches that operate 34 scheduled routes throughout Michigan’s upper and lower peninsulas. “I’m quite sure this is the first American bus line with hearing loops,” said David G. Myers, PhD, a

WASHINGTON, DC—The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has launched a national tele-audiology pilot program that it hopes will lay the groundwork for a permanent program to improve veterans’ access to audiologic care. In the pilot program, a computer network is used to transmit and regulate sound waves from an audiologist in one location to an office in a remote location.

NÆRUM, DENMARK–When the Ida Institute was established here in 2008, its mission was “to foster a better understanding of the human dynamics associated with hearing loss.” While that was a plenty ambitious goal, now the institute’s work is beginning to have an even wider impact than originally envisioned. The World Health Organization (WHO) has just published an educational textbook, Engage