Hearing aid and audio innovator Edgar M. Villchur died on October 17, 2011, at his Woodstock, NY home. He was 94. Villchur is known for developing the acoustic suspension loudspeaker in 1954, which revolutionized the field of high-fidelity audio. He is also well known for developing hearing aids with multichannel compression that utilized wide dynamic range compression (WDRC).
Read MoreIn 2006, Hear the World, a global hearing health awareness initiative created by Phonak, was launched. Their goal was to make the general public aware of the importance of good hearing and the consequences of hearing loss, as well as to inform them about prevention and solutions. Five years later, that mission is still going strong.
Read MoreThe Hearing Review is adding its first-ever monthly column to the magazine, as well as its weekly e-newsletter, The Insider. The new column will feature posts from the blogsite HearingHealthMatters.org, which was founded by a number of prominent figures in hearing healthcare.
Read MoreAvada Audiology and Hearing Care Centers have just introduced the BluLink PHD MiniLink hearing instruments, the next generation of Avadas BluLink series. The new line provides hands-free connectivity to Bluetooth-enabled wireless electronic devices and includes a faster microprocessor with four digital features.
Read MoreHouse Research Institute (HRI) has launched a 3-month nationwide campaign to engage teenagers about hearing loss prevention with an online T-shirt design contest. The social media initiative, called It’s How You Listen That Counts, will appear on popular teen websites, such as Pandora, Hulu, YouTube, and Facebook.
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Traditional and newer methods for phone and TV amplification are detailed in this article that highlights the usefulness of new wireless digital technology. However, it reminds that, as with any clinical decision on amplification, the needs and lifestyle of the individual client should take precedence.
Read MoreA new study from the University of Pennsylvania shows that declines in hearing ability may accelerate gray mater atrophy in auditory areas of the brain and increase the listening effort necessary for older adults to successfully comprehend speech. However, a hearing aid may help decrease the atrophy, as well as help hearing ability.
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A field study suggests that clients appear to prefer slightly more gain (4.2 dB) for soft-level inputs while listening to those languages that have a lower intensity at the end of a sentence (ie, Subject-Object-Verb syntax languages).
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The Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences at Vanderbilt University Medical Center will be hosting its annual “Hearing Aid Hands-On Workshop” on October 13 – 15, 2011.
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Trainable hearing aids are getting smarter about optimizing loudness, audibility, and comfort for speech, noise, and music.
Read MoreAfter attending the Starkey Hearing Foundation’s “So the World May Hear” awards gala on July 24, 2011, Whoopi Goldberg later revealed that she is another Baby Boomer celebrity who wears hearing aids.
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The benefits of binaural data exchange between hearing aids and to external audio/communication devices.
Read MoreNeuromonics reports that its treatment for tinnitus has restored a sense of normalcy in the lives of more than 1,100 veterans who have been successfully treated with its technology.
Read MoreSound Pharmaceuticals (SPI) will begin recruiting teenagers for a new clinical trial that tests the oral drug SPI-1005 to see if can prevent hearing loss from loud music.
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Work is continuing to further qualify the fundamental working principles of a voice-activated expandable balloon-type “earmold.” The ADEL system is designed to harvest sound energy, inflating and self-regulating a balloon-like coupler with a minimum of attenuation and distortion.
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