Hearing Loss

Millions of people with hearing loss are not using hearing aids, according to new research by Johns Hopkins scientists. Nearly 6.7 million Americans age 50 and older have hearing loss, but only  one in seven uses a hearing aid, according to the new research. The Hopkins researchers said it shows how under treated hearing loss is. It is the most expansive data analysis on the subject ever. “Understanding current rates of hearing loss treatment is important, as evidence is beginning to surface that hearing loss is associated with poorer cognitive functioning and the risk of dementia,” study senior investigator, otologist and epidemiologist Frank Lin said in a statement.

Two years after the Ravens selected him in the second round of the 2010 NFL draft, linebacker Sergio Kindle has yet to make a start, a tackle or a significant impact on the team's fortunes. An opportunity has presented itself to Kindle in the form of a season-threatening Achilles injury to Terrell Suggs, but he insists his mindset hasn't changed. To him, every season is make or break. “I feel that way every year because I haven't proven anything yet,” Kindle said Wednesday.

Regarding your recent article about people not using their hearing aids, I have a love/hate relationship with mine "People with hearing loss not using aids, study shows," Feb. 14). I can set the volume on mine at three different levels to hear better but, alas, any background noise is also amplified. That doesn't do much good in a noisy situation. Sometimes I can hear people six to 10 feet away better than someone sitting across the table from me. In frustration, I will turn my hearing aid off or just take it out and do the best I can. Until they make a hearing aid that can discriminate among sounds like my brain could before I had hearing loss - and one that doesn't cost an arm and a leg - I will just have to make the best of a bad situation.

Regarding your recent article about people not using their hearing aids, I have a love/hate relationship with mine "People with hearing loss not using aids, study shows," Feb. 14). I can set the volume on mine at three different levels to hear better but, alas, any background noise is also amplified. That doesn't do much good in a noisy situation. Sometimes I can hear people six to 10 feet away better than someone sitting across the table from me. In frustration, I will turn my hearing aid off or just take it out and do the best I can. Until they make a hearing aid that can discriminate among sounds like my brain could before I had hearing loss - and one that doesn't cost an arm and a leg - I will just have to make the best of a bad situation.

One in five Americans has significant hearing loss, far more than previously thought, according to new research that has scientists warning of an impending public health threat. Researchers at the Johns Hopkins University say the growing number of seniors in the United States are at risk of isolation from their hearing loss and could suffer physical and mental debilitation. "People think hearing loss is an inconsequential part of getting older," said Dr. Frank Lin, an assistant professor in Hopkins' department of otolaryngology-head and neck, who led the study.

The Glenwood Senior Center, 2400 Route 97, Cooksville, will offer a program about hearing loss with Dr. Ron Kaplan, "This Isn't Your Mother's Hearing Aid," at 10 a.m. Oct. 7. He will discuss hearing loss, why it happens and the new digital technology of hearing aids. Registration is requested by Oct. 6. Admission is free. http://www.highlandmd.org/arts&letters.html.

WASHINGTON -- When your teen-age child or friend is ignoring you, it may not be a sullen pout. He or she may not hear you.Thanks to lawn mowers, chain saws, firecrackers, target-shooting and high-decibel stereos, young people increasingly are destroying their inner-ear cells that process sound and are slowly but surely going deaf."

Motorists and pedestrians need to hear firetrucks approaching. But some firefighters say the sirens are too loud - and they hold manufacturers responsible for their hearing loss. Nearly 2,500 veteran firefighters across the country have joined in "mass tort" lawsuits accusing an Illinois siren-maker of marketing a defective product that damaged their hearing. "The defect is that the firefighters are behind the siren, and there's no design element to reduce the flow of decibels to them," said Jordan Margolis, a Chicago personal injury lawyer and the plaintiffs' lead attorney.

Miriam Gilbert grew up watching her father struggle with the frustrations of losing his hearing. And when her own hearing began to fail her years later, she knew she had to help other seniors with the same problem.So, at age 64, she took over a support group, Coping With Hearing Loss, from Dr. Sam Trychin of Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C. The group meets at the Pascal Senior Center in Glen Burnie."There are lots of problems when you can't hear," Ms. Gilbert said. "You get depressed and angry and you need some way to cope."

Say what? Having trouble getting the buzz at the party because there's too much, er, buzz? Do those "s's," "f's," "t's" and "th's" sound too much alike? A growing number of forty and fiftysomethings, baby boomers who grew up on rock music, played in bands and have enjoyed living loud in general, are seeking a new form of high-tech relief: Digital hearing devices that help recapture the high pitch frequency sounds they're beginning to lose. A 2004 study by the Better Hearing Institute shows that more than 12 million people ages 45 to 64 are encountering hearing problems - and that two-thirds of Americans with hearing loss are below retirement age. Another survey by the Ear Foundation projects that nearly half (49 percent)

Millions of people with hearing loss are not using hearing aids, according to new research by Johns Hopkins scientists. Nearly 6.7 million Americans age 50 and older have hearing loss, but only  one in seven uses a hearing aid, according to the new research. The Hopkins researchers said it shows how under treated hearing loss is. It is the most expansive data analysis on the subject ever. “Understanding current rates of hearing loss treatment is important, as evidence is beginning to surface that hearing loss is associated with poorer cognitive functioning and the risk of dementia,” study senior investigator, otologist and epidemiologist Frank Lin said in a statement.

One in five Americans has significant hearing loss, far more than previously thought, according to new research that has scientists warning of an impending public health threat. Researchers at the Johns Hopkins University say the growing number of seniors in the United States are at risk of isolation from their hearing loss and could suffer physical and mental debilitation. "People think hearing loss is an inconsequential part of getting older," said Dr. Frank Lin, an assistant professor in Hopkins' department of otolaryngology-head and neck, who led the study.

They're called the iPod Generation - all those kids wired to earbuds and MP3 players this holiday season as they hunker down to endure long road trips or relatives that visit even longer. But they're at risk of becoming the "Huh? What?" Generation. With the increasing popularity of MP3 players - and the loud, long listening habits of today's youth - millions of children and teens are at a newfound risk of noise-induced hearing loss. Doctors around the country say they are seeing younger and younger patients with hearing loss symptoms that typically don't occur before middle age. Many of them blame constant use of iPods and other players that blare music directly into ears.

The Glenwood Senior Center, 2400 Route 97, Cooksville, will sponsor a Halloween and Harvest Bingo at 9:30 a.m. Oct. 14. Take a Halloween or fall treat to be used as a bingo prize. Free admission. Registration is requested by Friday. The Glenwood Community Book Club will meet at the senior center at 10 a.m. Wednesday and Nov. 5. The group will discuss Peace Like a River by Leif Enger on Wednesday. The center will offer a Painting and Drawing Open Studio from 9 a.m. to noon Wednesdays.

The Glenwood Senior Center, 2400 Route 97, Cooksville, will offer a program about hearing loss with Dr. Ron Kaplan, "This Isn't Your Mother's Hearing Aid," at 10 a.m. Oct. 7. He will discuss hearing loss, why it happens and the new digital technology of hearing aids. Registration is requested by Oct. 6. Admission is free. http://www.highlandmd.org/arts&letters.html.

Despite serious concerns about their artistic integrity, members of the Seldon Plan agreed to crank up the volume on their latest album. The Baltimore-based band had a good reason: They want your attention. And so does everybody else. That's because studio engineers are pushing the envelope on technology that makes recordings sound louder than ever before - ensnaring listeners in an audio arms race dubbed "The Loudness Wars." "The level of compact discs went up about 20 decibels in 20 years," observed Bob Katz, chief mastering engineer of Digital Domain, a sound studio in Florida.

Jeanne Yeoman had been dealing with her hearing loss for a couple of decades, but listening still exhausted her. And technology wasn't really helping her patience. She remembers driving down the road one day and coming close to just hurling her hearing aids out the window. "Hearing aids made everything louder, not clearer," she says. "I didn't need amplification. I needed clarification." Yeoman wasn't deaf. So she was surprised to learn that she was an ideal candidate for an experimental type of cochlear implant.

For Rahul Rajagopalan, life is about mastering one challenge after another. A junior taking advanced courses at Marriotts Ridge High School, he has a perfect 4.0 grade-point-average. He also plays the piano, is a clarinetist with the Columbia Concert Band and excels at tournament-level chess. But the challenge some would think would be the most daunting is the one that fazes him least, said his school counselor, Will Schwarz. Rajagopalan was born deaf. "He is truly an exceptional young man," said Schwarz, "and he has not let his disability slow him down."