Hearing Care is Health Care
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Protect your ears this summer

The summer season is fast upon us, and so are all the fun summer activities! We’d like to take a minute to remind you of how important it is to remember that some of the fun things you do could have an irreversible effect of your hearing.

  1. Yard Work: A well groomed yard shouldn’t lead to hearing loss as you age. Protect your hearing from lawn mowers, weed whippers, chain saws and leaf blowers!
  2. Fireworks: The beautiful displays of fireworks can damage your hearing. Ringing in at up to 125dB, that’s enough to permanently cause a threshold shift. Remember your children’s ears as well at fireworks time.
  3. Sporting Events & Concerts: The loud cheers at your favorite ballpark (Go Tigers!) and summer concerts can last up to 3 hours. On average, the sound levels can reach 95dB+. That duration and intensity of sound may result in tinnitus the next day – that’s your ears’ way of telling you they were overexposed to sound.
  4. Boats and Motorcycles: Its not just the engine noise that can harm your hearing – wind noise can be the culprit! Consult our audiologists for custom hearing protection that will still allow you to hear the important sounds around you while riding and boating safely.

Make sure you get outside and enjoy all of the super activities that are part of summer traditions, but please – PROTECT THOSE EARS! If you are experiencing ringing, buzzing or fullness in your ears this summer, consult our Doctors of Audiology, Audiologists!

 

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Why choose Audiology?

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May is “Better Speech & Hearing Month”. Throughout the month of May, audiologists put in extra effort to highlight the importance of hearing health within our communities. Every year, thousands of professionals involved with the treatment of speech, language and hearing disorders come together to participate in a public awareness campaign that encourages early detection and prevention of communication disorders, and seeks to increase the public’s sensitivity to the challenges faced by individuals experiencing them.

Have questions about your hearing or speech? We’re happy to answer any questions or concerns that you may have about your hearing. Contact us today to arrange a consultation or your annual hearing test with our Doctor of Audiology! (519) 961-9285.

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Startling Statistics About BPPV

At The Hearing & Dizziness Clinic, we understand how debilitating BPPV or  Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo can be.

Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo is the most common form of positional vertigo and is probably the most common disorder involving vertigo. It’s an affliction of the inner ear. In the most common clinical scenario, when the patient changes the position of the head, he or she feels that the room is spinning. The person may experience significant nausea as well.┘

According to The University of California, BPPV will affect nearly 40 percent of people over 40 at least once in their lifetime.

The good news about BPPV is that in most cases, it is entirely treatable.

The bad news about BPPV is that studies show, it can take an absurdly very long time from presentation of symptoms to treatment.

 

Two recent studies explored the time period from initial presentation of symptoms of BPPV to correct diagnosis. Fife and Fitzgerald report that in the United Kingdom, the mean wait time from initial presentation to correct diagnosis was 92 weeks. A more recent study out of China found the delay to be longer than 70 months.

We have witnessed this very same phenomenon in our practice, when people have seen multiple specialties and undergone several tests over the course of months and even years. Patients have altered their lives to accommodate their BPPV, changed their habits, disturbed their activities, family lives and working responsibilities. BPPV is easily diagnosed and easily treated.

In both studies mentioned above, the subjects were treated with Canalith repositioning (CRP) once the diagnosis of BPPV was made. In the Chinese study over 80% were successfully treated with one CRP, while the Fife and Fitzgerald study reports 85% were successfully treated.

Perhaps this is the most disturbing reality of these studies. 8/10 people who had suffered for years from Vertigo were cured of their BPPV in one treatment. Just one. 

At least 85% of cases had classical symptoms of BPPV and could have been easily identified by Primary Care Physicians at first referral, had they been trained to recognize and diagnose the condition.┌

It’s amazing to me that once someone is affected by BPPV and they tell their family and friends about it, they are shocked to realize how many people they know have experienced the very same thing! Further, they are shocked at just how easy it is to treat.

We are happy to test and manage your BPPV for you and your loved ones right in the heart of Essex County. If you have questions or concerns in regards to who we are and how we can help, please never hesitate to contact us. We are here to help!

Don’t be a statistic! 

Read More

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Thank you Essex for your Support!

It’s Food Bank day at The Hearing & Dizziness Clinic!

THANK YOU Essex County for your support of our non-perishable food donations to The Essex Area Food Bank.

We had set a goal of 500lbs to collect for those in our community who are in need of our help, doing hearing tests in exchange for non-perishable food items. We are happy to report that we have SMASHED that goal with at least twice what we had hoped! You brought everything from noodles to beans, rice to corn meal and cereal and baby food.

Please call if you are in need of your annual hearing screening. For a limited time, our Doctors of Audiology will provide complimentary adult hearing screenings for a canned food donation. Call today to arrange your appointment at (519) 961-9285

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New Physician Guidelines for Treating Children’s Ear Infections

The American Academy of Pediatrics and American Academy of Family Physicians released their new treatment recommendations for children who suffer from Otitis Media with Effusion or OME (commonly known as ‘fluid’ or an ear infection).

New recommendations include

  • additional information on pneumatic otoscopy and tympanometry to improve diagnostic certainty;
  • expanded information on speech and language assessment for children with OME;
  • new recommendations for managing OME in children who fail a newborn hearing screen and for evaluating at-risk children;
  • a new recommendation against using topical intranasal steroids;
  • a new recommendation against adenoidectomy for a primary indication of OME in children under 4 years of age;
  • a new recommendation for assessing OME outcomes.

Clinicians should continue to avoid antibiotics and myringotomy (tube) surgery (under aged 4).

More information can be found here.

 

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October is Audiology Awareness Month! What is an Audiologist?

October is right at the doorstep: the trees are starting to change, the weather has taken a turn and of course: We’re about to kick off Audiology Awareness Month!

What is an Audiologist?

Well according to Google, we are health-care professionals who evaluate, diagnose, treat, and manage hearing loss, tinnitus, and balance disorders in newborn, children, and adults. Audiology is a well-respected and highly recognized profession. However, we think we do much, much more!

We act as marriage counselors, miracle workers, a shoulder to cry on, community members, hearing aid mechanics, friends and trusted allies.

Why should you choose an Audiologist?

An Audiologist has extensive education, training and experience in your auditory system. We are not just here to sell and service hearing aids, our scope of practice is much larger. Audiologists are taught the foundations of how sound works, the underpinnings of hearing aid fitting algorithms, and the best ways to identify not only hearing loss, but also any underlying conditions that may need medical attention. Audiologists in Ontario are governed by CASLPO – College of Audiologists and Speech-Language Pathologists of Ontario which sets the the gold standards of practice.

If you have questions about whether or not you should see an Audiologist, please do not hesitate to contact us at any time! We can be reached at (519) 961-9285, Monday through Friday.

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Top 10 Facts About Positional Vertigo (BPPV)- Balance Awareness Week

Is benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV)  a rare and exotic disease? No, on most clinic days, I see at least one person with BPPV, and often, I see several. For some, BPPV is a minor annoyance. For others, it’s a nightmare of dizziness, loss of balance, nausea, and inability to work or participate in family activities. — Gregory T. Whitman, M.D. (otoneurology)

Here are the Top 10 things you should know about Positional Vertigo (BPPV), with thanks to the Vestibular Disorders Association

1. If you woke up with vertigo, it is likely you have BPPV.

2. If you have vertigo that comes on when you lie down, it is likely you have BPPV.

3. If you have had more than 2 episodes of severe vertigo, there’s a strong possibility you have BPPV .

4. If you have BPPV in both ears, it will almost certainly throw off your balance.

5. If you have a past history of migraine and develop BPPV, you may notice an increase in headaches or light sensitivity. These symptoms will likely decrease after the BPPV has been successfully treated.

6. After BPPV has been treated, it’s a good idea for the doctor to ensure that dizziness, imbalance and related symptoms resolve.

7. If your vertigo makes you nauseated, and you do not have any vestibular tests planned, you may want to ask your audiologist if it would be all right to take a medication for vertigo before the Epley Maneuver. This can make BPPV treatment much more comfortable.

8. Curing a bout of BPPV can require persistence. Doctors and Audiologists always talk about the “easy” cases, miraculously cured on the first visit. However, I have seen patients who needed treatment on 10 different days in one month to finally clear the symptoms.

9. Another version of Rule 8: if you’ve “had BPPV for a year” or more, it’s likely you haven’t been treated enough.

10. In some cases, BPPV follows a previous inner ear infection that has damaged the inner ear and/or vestibular nerve. If this is the case, and if you still have symptoms after successful treatment of BPPV, the best treatment may be vestibular physical therapy, intended to train the ear and brain to work well together.

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If you think that you or someone you may know may benefit from speaking to our Doctors of Audiology, please give us a call! We’re here to help you (519) 961-9285.

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Please join us September 12 for a Wellness Block Party!

Please join us September 12, 2015 for the Victoria Plaza Wellness Block Party!

The clinics at the Victoria Plaza (The old Siefker Plaza) would like to welcome you to learn about local health and wellness services!

The Hearing & Dizziness Clinic is offering complimentary Hearing Screenings for all attendees of the Block Party!

We hope to see you September 12, 2015 from 10:00am until 2:00pm! Wellness-Block-Party-09-03-15

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The Importance of Back to School Hearing Assessments

It’s back to school time! That means more than new sneakers and stationary, it means its time to have your child’s hearing tested with our Doctors of Audiology!

As you know, hearing loss and auditory processing problems are not uncommon in children and these issues can greatly affect a child’s ability to learn and participate in classroom activities.

Reports that undiagnosed hearing loss can lead to a longer learning curve, speech and language delays, and even behavioral problems due to the child not hearing or understanding instructions.

Children are also susceptible to chronic ear infections which can potentially lead to hearing loss. If your child suffers from frequent ear infections, it is important to monitor his or her hearing thresholds.

Before the school year begins, it may be a good idea to:

  1. Schedule a full diagnostic hearing test before the school year starts
  2. Monitor your child’s learning progress and look for signs of hearing loss. Not sure what to look for? Does your child turn up the volume of the TV excessively high? Respond inappropriately to questions you ask? Not reply when you call him/her? Watch others to copy what they are doing? Have articulation problems or speech/language delays? Have problems academically? Complain of earaches, ear pain or head noises? Have difficulty understanding what people are saying? Seem to speak differently from other children his or her age?
  3. If your child wears a hearing instrument or has any special hearing needs, notify the child’s teacher before school starts. Provide the teacher with extra batteries for hearing devices if needed an outline any special needs the child may have to ensure they are able to participate in classroom activities.
  4. Remember to check volume limits on toys, video games, iPads and computers. Even an hour a day of volume over 80dB can cause permanent damage to your child’s little ears and noise induced hearing loss is on the rise.

By Scheduling a hearing test prior to the start of classes, parents can avoid potential learning setbacks. As always, we’re here to help. If you would like to book a hearing test for your child, please call our Doctors of Audiology today at (519) 961-9285.

 

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This was fun!

Our receptionist stumbled across THIS WEBPAGE today.

In this test, created by Amplifon, players are taken to three different locations filled with noises.

It’s the player’s task to locate the waterfall, birds and telephone. The interactive sound map lets you move 360 degrees around the public location to pin-point the source. The noises get louder and clearer as you explore the map. After you’ve had a stab, it reveals where other users have guessed.

Aging is the most common cause of hearing loss, but the World Health Organisation recently said that the single largest cause of preventable loss is loud noise, such as from heavy industry in work places and loud music.

Generally, we don’t like online hearing tests – as they are only as good as your speaker system, but this was a fun take on showing how well we localize sound.

Put on your headphones and give it a try! And if you don’t score as well as you had thought, you know who to call!

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Who needs Beats when you have these?

It’s estimated that half of baby boomers have some degree of hearing loss, caused by everything from rock music to lawn mowers or just aging. (It happens.) Yet only a quarter of those who need hearing aids actually get them. As one study notes, “For many people a hearing aid is an unwelcome reminder of the aging process, one that they simply cannot accept.”

Screw that. When I explain what my hearables can do, the kids are envious.

We love this article on the Mother Nature Network, and the vigor with which Lloyd Alter writes about his ‘hearables‘. We wish that everyone had the appreciation for the raw power of these tiny little devices that sit in our ears. So much more than a hearing aid, hearables help control the life around us and connect us to family, friends and the rest of the world in a way that leaves “kids envious”. Who needs Beats when you have these?

Forget wearables; let’s talk hearables, the devices formerly known as hearing aids. The hearing aid/hearables market is $5.4 billion worldwide, compared to the $2 billion headphone market. Apple buying Beats may have made headlines, but Apple building Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) and an accessibility app into the iPhone 5 and 6 is much more newsworthy. Why? Because this opens up the hearables market so wide that the $3 billion Beats purchase will look like small change — and make Google Glass look like a toy.

We think it’s pretty cool too! If you’d like to try a set of ‘hearables‘, please give us a call and we’d be happy to demonstrate this new realm of hearing technology on you! Call to arrange an appointment with our Doctors of Audiology, Audiologists. (519) 961-9285

 

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Osteoporosis linked to hearing loss

What do Diabetes, Kidney Disease, Smoking, Obesity, Noise Exposure and now Osteoporosis have in common?

An increased risk for sensorineural hearing loss. *

Researchers at the Hormone Health Network / Endocrine Society have recently discovered that those with osteoporosis, a progressive disorder that weakens the bones putting those with the disorder at risk for breaks and fractures – also increases the risk of developing a sudden sensorineural hearing loss nearly twofold.

Sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSHL), also called sudden deafness, is an unexplained, rapid loss of hearing that typically happens in one ear, It can happen all at once or over the course of several days. About half of the people who develop SSHL will spontaneously regain their hearing, but it is important to seek treatment immediately. About 85 percent of those who are treated for the condition recover some hearing.

 

If you have been diagnosed with osteoporosis, it is important to have a baseline hearing test and also to be aware that you are at risk. If you or someone you know has suffered a sudden hearing loss, it is imperative to seek medical help immediately.

* http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/04/150416132017.htm

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Why do we have earwax?

We stumbled across this video today:

Earwax is another of our body’s mundane, under-appreciated, yet totally amazing protective devices. Like eyelashes and nose hair, earwax shields our body from outside invaders, including dust, bacteria, and other micro-organisms that can get in and irritate, inflame, or infect. Earwax lubricates our ears, in much the same way as tears lubricate our eyes. Without adequate amounts of earwax, our ears would feel dry and itchy.

Since our ears are self-cleaning, we should never, ever stick anything in them! Hence the old adage that you shouldn’t put anything in your ears smaller than your elbow and YES! that includes Q-Tips, even though they seem perfectly designed to fit inside the narrow ear canal. Keep these swabs and any other objects – including your fingers – out of your ears. When you put something in your ear – to scratch an itch or to attempt to remove wax – you risk pushing wax further into the ear, where it can block sound from meeting your eardrum.

If you feel your earwax may be affecting your hearing, contact your doctor for an appointment, it may be useful to instill a few drops of oil daily into your ears for a couple of days before your appointment. And of course, afterward come to see us at The Hearing & Dizziness Clinic to have your hearing tested.

 

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The Epley Maneuver – Voodoo Medicine?

If you’ve ever been on the receiving end of the Epley maneuver – you’ll know where we’re coming from with this one….

The Epley maneuver is an exercise used to treat benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, or BPPV, which is a disorder arising in the inner ear. Its symptoms are repeated episodes of positional vertigo, that is, of a spinning sensation caused by changes in the position of the head. The maneuver is done with the assistance of an Audiologist or Doctor. A single 10- to 15-minute session usually is all that is needed. 

In the 1970’s, John Epley, the U.S. pioneer of cochlear implant surgery found that vertigo attacks were caused by crystals breaking free from the inner ear and settling in the semicircular canals of our vestibular organs. Our brain perceives these crystals as movement, even if we are still.

Our Audiologists at The Hearing & Dizziness Clinic have a special interest in vestibular disorders, whether it be true vertigo, un-diagnosed dizziness or imbalance. And if you ask some of our patients on the receiving end of the Epley maneuver, it sure seems like voodoo medicine. Often these patients get up and walk confidently from our office after just one treatment (sometimes after suffering years with vertigo). For particularly stubborn crystals – it may take two treatments.

Recent studies show that 40% of those admitted to hospital with a head injury have BPPV, and can be helped by the Epley Maneuver.

If you are suffering with vertigo, half an hour with our Audiologists may change your life. Call Melissa and set up an appointment with our Doctors of Audiology. We know it’s no fun to suffer with vertigo, so we’ll do our very best to get you in as quickly as possible. (519) 961-9285.

Sources: http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/may/18/adventures-in-human-being-gavin-francis-review-john-epley-wirvell, http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=9354276&utm_source=Issue_Alert&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=BIM