It’s summer and if you’re hearing crickets but they’re not in your back yard, you might have tinnitus. Tinnitus is the perception of sound when no external sound source is present. Tinnitus can take on any number of characteristics and is usually a sound that only you can hear. You can experience tinnitus that varies from soft to loud and … Read More
Hearing Protection a Must Around Fireworks
With the pandemic in 2020 and 2021 causing concerns about crowds gathering and the spread of the respiratory virus, many Fourth of July celebrations were canceled or individuals stayed away in 2020 and 2021. But this year, with transmission rates low and the desire to return to pre-pandemic fun high, many people will be joining the celebrations again. That means … Read More
Why Hearing Loss is a Family Affair
You’re sitting at the dinner table, but your conversation with your partner requires you to constantly repeat yourself. “What?” “Can you speak up?” and “Would you repeat that?” are all phrases that pepper your dinner talk. For family members of someone who has hearing loss, that scenario is all too common. Responses are often misunderstood by the individual with hearing … Read More
Swimmer’s Ear a Common Summer Problem
Summer is here and so is a common summer problem—swimmer’s ear. According to the Centers for Disease Control, swimmer’s ear, also known as otitis externa, is an infection of the outer ear canal. Swimmer’s ear can occur when water stays in the ear canal for an extended period. In other cases, regular swimming in chlorinated water can dry the ear … Read More
The Connection Between Smoking and Hearing Loss
According to the Centers for Disease Control, tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable disease, disability, and death in the United States. An estimated 30.8 million U.S. adults smoke cigarettes. Each year, nearly half a million Americans die prematurely of smoking or exposure to secondhand smoke. Another 16 million live with a serious illness caused by smoking. Each year, … Read More
Five Must-Have Features in Hearing Aids
Today’s medical devices are constantly evolving thanks to advances in technology, and hearing aids are no different. A hearing aid purchased a decade ago may have been the latest at the time, but if you’re still using that hearing aid, you are likely missing out on some of the latest advances in hearing aid technology—advances that cannot only make your … Read More
Four Things to Consider When Purchasing Hearing Aids
When you’re in the market for hearing aids, you tend to focus on two things—the technology you think you need to hear better and price. Both of those are important issues, but buying hearing aids is far more complex than many other consumer purchases. The decision you make not only impacts how well you hear, but how well you communicate … Read More
Weather Alerts for Individuals with Hearing Difficulties
Spring is here, and with it, thunderstorms, lightening and tornadoes, especially in the Kansas and Missouri communities where many of our patients reside. Though we all accept spring and summer storms as a fact of life and have come to rely on weather alerts that sound warnings on our televisions, radios and phones, for some who has hearing difficulties, these … Read More
How Loud is that Sound?
According to the World Health Organization, environmental noise is now being acknowledged as an important public health issue and a top environmental risk faced by the world today. One of the casualties of the noisy world we live in is noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL). NIHL can be caused by a one-time exposure to an intense “impulse” sound, such as an … Read More
May is Better Hearing Month—An Audiologist’s Role in Helping You Hear
May is Better Hearing Month and the perfect time to learn more about audiologists, the healthcare professionals who can help determine whether you have a hearing loss, and can help you hear your best. What is an audiologist? An audiologist is a degreed professional who specializes in the diagnosis and non-medical treatment of hearing loss, tinnitus, and balance disorders. Audiologists … Read More
