More to Treating Hearing Loss than Better Hearing: The Link Between Untreated Hearing Loss and Dementia
There is a growing body of evidence supporting the claim that treating hearing loss not only improves hearing but also improves quality of life. Various types of hearing loss can be treated using hearing aids, cochlear implants, assistive listening devices, and/or medical intervention. By treating hearing loss, not only are there improvements in the aided ability to understand speech with ease, but there are also demonstrable improvements in that person’s emotional, mental, and social aspects of life. Earlier this year, researchers at Johns Hopkins Medical…
Across America Hearing Check Challenge
To help people understand the serious impact that hearing loss can have on their lives, the Better Hearing Institute has developed and validated a simple 15-item online test that individuals can take in the privacy and comfort of their own home. The test is designed to help people better understand just how serious their hearing loss is, and to determine whether or not they need further help. Across America Hearing Check Challenge Please realize that this online hearing test is not equivalent to a professional…
Understanding Your Hearing
In order to understand hearing, or the auditory system, and the ability to perceive sound and understand speech, it is best to consider the ear as being divided into 3 parts: the external ear, the middle ear, and the inner ear. The external ear consists of the auricle and the ear canal. These structures direct sound towards the eardrum. The middle ear is the space that lies between the external ear and inner ear. The middle ear is made up of the eardrum and the…
Bilateral myringotomy and tube placement: Should my child have tubes placed?
Bilateral myringotomy and tube placement, or “placing PE tubes”, is the most common surgical procedure performed in the United States, and for good reason. Simply put, for the right child, it is a simple, safe procedure, which can help resolve chronic middle ear infections while preventing future infections and eliminating the need for numerous courses of antibiotics. The question is how do we choose “the right child”. Generally, this decision is made along with the parents after carefully reviewing not only the patient’s physical examination,…
Overcoming Ear Infections: Six-Year-Old Finds Relief With Surgery
Emily Schadt is all too familiar with ear surgery. Although she is only six years old, she’s already experienced five surgical procedures. Prior to her most recent surgery at CornerStone Ear Nose & Throat, ear infections and eardrum perforations seemed to be a constant presence in her life. Her father, radio personality Paul Schadt, and mother, Kathy, both credit Richard Gillespie, Jr., M.D., of CornerStone Ear, Nose & Throat with this dramatic improvement. “We are so very grateful to Dr. Gillespie and the staff of…
The Facts About Wax: New Medical Guidelines Recommend Avoiding Ear Wax Removal
Most people feel the need to remove ear wax or cerumen, which is the mixture of secretion, hair and dead skin. But new guidelines released by the American Academy of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery Foundation state that, as long as the ears are functioning properly, people should leave ear wax in its place. Highlights from the report include: Overall, ear wax is beneficial and self-cleaning. Each year, 12 million people in the United States seek medical care for impacted ear wax. Ears should only…
Surgical Intervention Restores Normal Hearing And Balance After Inner Ear Trauma
Damage to the inner ear can lead to permanent hearing loss, vertigo and other severe balance problems. Immediate attention from an otolaryngologist, along with the proper treatment and follow-up, can make the critical difference between life-long profound deafness and a return to normal hearing. With a recent case of inner ear trauma at Cornerstone Ear, Nose & Throat, we were able to restore a patient’s normal hearing although he only returned for follow-up when his conditioned had worsened. A Dramatic Case This 35-year-old man suffered…
Jodi Thought She Was Deaf: But We Wouldn’t Hear Of It: Detection of Otosclerosis Made Recovery Possible
Jodi Grice knows just how life-changing a second opinion can be. That’s because four years ago, when she saw her doctor about the gradual hearing loss she was experiencing, Jodi was told a hearing aid was her only option. Fortunately, a friend suggested she go to CornerStone Ear, Nose & Throat for a second opinion. Thanks to that office visit and the treatment that followed, today she has normal hearing in both ears. After Richard Gillespie, M.D., of CornerStone Ear, Nose & Throat examined Jodi…
Infant Hearing Screening Is Critical in Avoiding Impact on Speech and Social Development
Hearing loss is one of the most frequently occurring congenital disabilities, affecting approximately three in 1,000 people. Without early detection and intervention, hearing impairment in infants and young children can negatively impact speech and language acquisition, academic achievement, and cognitive and social development. It is a potential source of liability for the patients’ physicians if the problem is not caught and addressed in a timely fashion. If detected and treated, however, these negative impacts can be greatly diminished and even eliminated through early intervention. In…
Digital Hearing Aids Are Effective For High Frequency Hearing Loss
High frequency hearing loss, which results in difficulty hearing in the presence of background noise, was not easily treatable in the past. Analog hearing aid technology amplifies the overall sound in an area, and doesn’t help a person differentiate speech from surrounding noise. With the progression of hearing aid technology from analog to digital, there are new solutions for high frequency hearing loss. Most major hearing aid manufacturers have a line of digital hearing aids specifically for high frequency sensorineural hearing loss or noise induced…
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