I was quite thrilled to receive an email from Trent Westrick, The Continuing Education Committee Chair at the American Academy of Audiology July 1st informing me that I had achieved the status of 2024 Academy Scholar. He stated through my dedication to the field of audiology and my commitment to continued professional excellence, Academy Scholars are those who complete a total of 50 continuing education hours (5.0 hours) over a two-year period. The American Academy of Audiology was pleased to honor me for achieving the status of a 2024 Academy Scholar throughout 2022 and 2023.

To maintain my audiology license with the state of North Carolina, I am required to complete 10 continuing education hours. To maintain board certification requires an additional 5 CEUs for a total of 15 per year. The field of audiology is continually evolving and even after 39 years of providing audiological care, there is always more to learn. Nonetheless, I was honored to be recognized by the Academy.

The learning continues…I shared with you last month that Dr. Mussler and Jane Walters were attending a collaboration in Chicago on diagnosing and the treatment of Hidden Hearing Loss (HLL). To review, the term HLL is used to describe someone that has significant hearing/understanding difficulties especially in the presence of background noise, but, yet their ability to detect sound is normal or near normal. Recall the job of the cochlea, our sensory organ or inner ear of hearing has the responsibility to detect the sounds around us. That is why a standard audiological evaluation always consists of listening to beep-beep tones where we determine the soft level you can hear at different pitches or frequencies of sound.

Unfortunately, most “standard” audiological evaluations do not measure someone’s ability to understand in the presence of background noise such as a noisy restaurant or family gathering. So, an individual is sent home after being told they had “normal” hearing. How frustrating not to be heard, and not understanding what is going on and what to do about it. We must look beyond the cochlea. And We are.

Dr. Mussler and Jane came back with a lot of wonderful information. To expand upon their knowledge, I am headed to Columbus for another collaboration on the same topic. Different audiologists will be attending, and our host is Dr. Gail Whitelaw, audiology professor at Ohio State University. When I return, we establish an appropriate test battery and treatment plan which will include auditory training, and possibly low gain amplification.

In preparation for my trip to OSU, I listened to a webinar by Joaquin Tomas Valderrama-Valenzuela, PhD, a Senior Research Scientist currently leading the Electrophysiology section at the National Acoustic Laboratories (Sydney, Australia). He and his team have determined three underlying mechanisms for HLL resulting from loud/noise exposure.
Cochlear Synaptopathy-loss of synapsis of the inner hair cells of the cochlea and the auditory nerve.

Auditory Nerve Demyelination-damage to the protective covering of the auditory nerve.
Midbrain Maladaptation-affects how the brain responds to loud sound (noise of a busy restaurant)
All of those sound pretty scary and can mostly be avoided. If I have taught you nothing else in the 13 years I have had the privilege of writing for the Savvy, it is to USE YOUR HEARING PROTECTION! It is better to avoid a loud situation but that is not always possible, nor enjoyable. It doesn’t matter if it is a chain saw, lawn mower, extended use of a hair dryer or attending a concert…loud is loud and the damage is awful.

In next month’s Savvy article, I will tie it all together for you and explain our new test protocol and treatment options. But until then, if you would like more information or to schedule an appointment, give Jamie or Diane a call at 704-633-0023. Remember to visit our website: www.hearingsolutionsofnc.com and like us on Facebook. Dr. Mussler, Jane, Cheryl and I look forward to seeing you soon.