Portland, Ore — The National Center for Rehabilitative Auditory Research (NCRAR) will be holding its 5th International Conference at The Nines Hotel in downtown Portland, Ore on October 12 to 14, 2011. The conference title is “Expanding Our Horizons: Medical Conditions and Audiology.”

The NCRAR is located at the Portland VA Medical Center (PVAMC) and  is currently one of 14 Centers of Excellence funded by the VA Rehabilitation Research and Development (RR&D) Service. It is the only such center dedicated to the discovery and delivery of cutting-edge solutions to auditory system impairments.

The NCRAR conference will open with a keynote address from Karen Cruickshanks titled “Epidemiology of hearing loss and tinnitus.”

Conference presentations on October 13 and 14 will address:

  • Hormones and hearing;
  • Management of hereditary hearing loss;
  • Auditory dysfunction in multiple sclerosis;
  • Mechanisms and management of autoimmune inner ear disease;
  • Hearing loss and vestibular dysfunction associated with drug abuse;
  • Effects of strokes on auditory processing;
  • Auditory dysfunction associated with dementia/Alzheimer disease; and
  • Auditory hallucinations and communication.

The presenters include Nina Dronkers, Robert Folmer, Robert Frisina Jr, George Gates, Akira Ishiyama, M. Samantha Lewis, William Rooney, Richard Smith, Dennis Trune, and Cynthia Wible

There will also be a preconference workshop titled “Person-centered Auditory Rehabilitation Practices,” on October 12 with presenters SueAnn Erdman, Jean Pierre Gagné, Mary Beth Jennings, Elizabeth Mauze, and David Wark.

For more details, registration, poster submissions, and scholarship applications, see the conference Web site or contact [email protected].

SOURCE: National Center for Rehabilitative Auditory Research