Surviving Hearing Loss: A Personal Perspective

Katherine Bouton

Michigan Audiology ConferenceOctober 16, 2014

Hearing Loss Health

• Hearing Loss Is Normal

• Hearing Aids Work

• Honesty Is Liberating

• Advocacy Is Empowering

Age of Onset of Hearing Loss

• Percentage distribution by sex and age, based on subjects' report of any permanent hearing loss (National Health Interview Survey, 2007).

• Female Male• Birth 2 2• 0–2 years 3 2• 3–5 years 3 2• 6–19 years 12 11• 20–39 years 20 32• 40–59 years 30 32• 60–69 years 14 12• 70+ years 16 8

• Source: National Health Interview Survey, 2007. Chart created by the NIDCD Epidemiology and Statistics Program. Updated in November 2012.

Prevalence of Hearing Loss in the United States, 2001-2008

Hearing loss defined as a better-ear PTA of 0.5-4kHz tones > 25 dB

Lin et al., Arch Int Med. 2011

Hearing Loss & Hearing Aid Use Prevalence in the U.S. , 1999-2006

Chien & Lin, Arch Int Med, 2012

Noise Aging.

Dangerous noise levels are a combination of time and intensity.

• Loud. But short.

Daily Exposure

Blender

Lawn mower

Food processor

Vacuum cleaner

Power saw

Football Game

Restaurant

Audiogram 1988

New York Times

Audiogram 2008

HOW I HEAR TODAY

September 2014

Ready? Say the Word….

• Sheep Cheap?

• Mess Nest?

• Witch Rich?

• Sit Sh……?

Context is Everything

What?

• Tour • Four• Shore • Chore• Thor

Ah! I get it.

The Viking Thor chose as his chore to take the four ashore and give them a tour.

Maxwell and one of his favorite foods.

-

Conversation in the dog park.

“What’s his name?”

“Four and a half.”

Huh?

Misunderstanding

• Most People With Hearing Loss Can’t Read Sign

Language.

Where is the CART screen?

The FM system? The induction loop?

Medicare and Hearing Health

Untreated Hearing Loss

• Depression and isolation.

• Anxiety. Paranoia.

• Increased risk of falls. Balance issues.

• Cognitive decline.

Hearing Loss & Incident Dementia Dementia incidence in 639 adults followed for >10 years in the BLSA

Lin et al., Arch Neuro., 2011

HR 95% CI p

Mild 1.89 1.00 – 3.58 0.05

Moderate 3.00 1.43 – 6.30 .004

Severe 4.94 1.09 – 22.4 .04

Risk of incident all-cause dementia

(compared to normal hearing)a

a Adjusted for age, sex, race, education, DM, smoking, & hypertension

The question of whether treating hearing loss could delay cognitive/physical

decline or dementia remains unknown

There has never been a randomized clinical trial of treating hearing loss to explore effects on

reducing the risk of cognitive decline/dementia

Frnak Lin

The Cost of Dementia

• By 2050 one in 30 Americans will have dementia.

• “ If we could delay the onset by even one year, the prevalence of dementia drops by 15 percent down the road. You’re talking about billions in health care savings.”

• Frank Lin

Hearing Loss & Hearing Aid Use Prevalence in the U.S. , 1999-2006

Chien & Lin, Arch Int Med, 2012

Medicare and Hearing Health

New York Times Newsroom(acoustic nightmare)

Honesty is Liberating

Which Would You Rather Been Seen As?

• Someone with Hearing Loss, a medical

condition that is correctable with

hearing aids.

• Senile, Drunk, Stupid,

Burned Out, Snobbish,

Bored, Uninterested,

Empty-Headed,

Vacuous, Ditzy.

Anger Can Be Destructive

Or Constructive. Turn It Into Advocacy.

Support and Advocacy

Hearing Aids

So many choices. And so expensive.

Audiology

CareerCast ranks Audiology #5 on its list of

Best Jobs of 2014.

BLS Median Annual Salary: $69,720 Projected Job Growth by 2022: 34%

Jobs Rated Score : 110

The telephone!

It might as well be this…. Without this.

Phonak SmartLink+ FM Transmitter

The speaker wears this transmitted around his neck or puts it on a podium.

On the left , the settings for sound direction.

On the right, settings for volume and program, as well as for answering the phone.

Why are these on the speaker’s device when it is the listener who may need to use them?

Traveling With Chargers

My chargers need a suitcase of their

own.

Adapter and Power Strip.

Left to RightSmartLink charger

MyLink chargerMacBook Air charger

Cochlear Implant battery chargerIPhone (camera) charger.

No room for the Nook or for my regular camera chargers.

Let’s Loop AmericaThese signs should be clearly posted inside and outside the venue.

• Loop sign Version 1 • Loop sign Version 2

Looping may need to be supplemented by CART and ASL.

A New Life

Career change.

My own schedule.

Advocacy.

Friends.

HLAA

”The Nation’s Voice for People with Hearing Loss.”

Advocacy, education, support,

companionship.

Advocacy is empowering.

Advocacy

• “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”

•― Margaret Mead

Movie Theater

Garble vs. Clarity

Chaos vs. Order

What??? Communicate.

Looping = Hearing

Hearing is Good

Acknowledgements

• Thanks to my publisher, Sarah Crichton Books at Farrar, Straus & Giroux, for funding my research.

• Thanks to Frank Lin, Johns Hopkins Medical Center, for sharing his research, insight and slides.