Involvement of the incudostapedial joint anomaly in conductive deafness

from Acta Oto-Laryngologica

Conclusion. The outcome of surgery depends on complexities of middle ear anomalies and definite diagnosis can only be achieved during exploratory tympanotomy. We must be aware that the pathology of the congenital ossicular anomalies is variable and careful surgery is needed for hearing improvement. Objective. This study aimed to investigate congenital ossicular malformation. Subjects and methods. Fifteen cases of ossicular anomalies without external ear malformation were studied. The anomaly of the incus-stapes complex was the most frequent. There were two cases of fused incudostapedial (IS) joint, which is an extremely rare occurrence. Case 1 was a 33-year-old man, in whom otosclerosis was suspected and exploratory tympanotomy was performed. The IS joint was fused, and the stapes was immobile. Small fenestra stapedectomy was performed. In case 2, a 52-year-old woman, otosclerosis was also suspected and exploratory tympanotomy was performed. The IS joint was fused and the incus was fixed. After the long process of the incus was cut, the stapes became mobile. However, since the incus remained immobile, it was removed and was placed on the stapes. In both cases, the hearing improved after surgery. The averaged hearing gain of 15 cases was 28.8 dB.

A systematic review of the incidence of sensorineural hearing loss in neonates exposed to Herpes simplex virus (HSV)

from the International Journal of Pediatric Otorhinolaryngology

Summary
Objective
To develop evidence-based guidelines for appropriate audiological monitoring of children born following exposure to or infection with Herpes simplex virus (HSV) for development of immediate or delayed-onset of sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL).

Data sources
A Medline search of the 1966–July 2007 database was supplemented by search of the additional database Embase (1980–July 2007). Manual search was conducted of references of identified papers and book chapters.

Study selection
Articles were sought that were longitudinal in design, to include an inception cohort of children infected with (or exposed to) HSV who were entered at a similar point at birth and followed over time with serial audiometry to identify hearing loss if it developed.

Data extraction
Patient information and audiometric data extraction from relevant articles was performed independently by all three researchers. Discrepancies were resolved by mutual consensus.

Data synthesis
Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics.

Results
Three papers reported five children with SNHL following apparent disseminated HSV-2 infections in which other obvious clinical sequelae of HSV infection and co-morbid conditions were present. Audiometric information is lacking regarding onset and progression. There are no reports of delayed-onset SNHL following perinatal or asymptomatic HSV infection.

Conclusions
The development of SNHL in children with exposure to HSV occurs rarely. Routine serological screening for HSV infection in otherwise healthy neonates newly diagnosed with SNHL is unjustified. There is insufficient data to define the incidence and natural history of SNHL in children with HSV infections. Carefully designed and conducted studies are needed to address this issue.

First and Second Language Tongue Movements in Spanish and Korean Bilingual Speakers

from Phonetica

A number of previous studies have relied on perceptual judgments or acoustic analysis to examine second language (L2) production. However, few researchers have studied L2 performance by directly tracking the physical movements of the articulators. The purpose of the present study was to investigate intraspeaker differences in native (Korean or Spanish) and L2 (English) production through kinematic indices of tongue activity. This involved measurement of the speed, duration, and distance of tongue movements or strokes during speech. Findings indicated that the speakers had significantly slower stroke speeds and longer movement durations for L2 when compared to their native language (L1), yet no significant differences in stroke distance. The bilingual speakers were found to pause more and speak proportionally less of the time in their L2. Interestingly, those speakers who exhibited greater relative kinematic changes from L1 to L2 were also rated as having a stronger perceived accent.

‘Frame Dominance’ and the Serial Organization of Babbling, and First Words in Korean-Learning Infants

from Phonetica

Korean-learning infant patterns in babbling and single words were compared with those of English-learning infants and with Korean adult-directed and infant-directed speech to evaluate the roles of intrinsic production constraints proposed by the frame dominance hypothesis versus early learning mechanisms based on input regularities. Intrasyllabic patterns in babbling of Korean-learning infants were like those of English-learning infants. These patterns were not present in Korean infant-directed speech, providing evidence for the assertion that they are intrinsic to infants, and not triggered by input. Unlike English-learning infants, however, Korean-learning infants did not show the expected intrasyllabic patterns in their first words, suggesting that the intrinsic constraints can be overcome in first words if they conflict with ambient speech patterns as they do in Korean. Intersyllabic patterns of Korean-learning infants were mostly similar to those of English-learning infants, showing preferences for consonant manner and vowel height variegation in babbling though only a vowel variegation preference in words. Some implications of the results for generative phonology are considered.

Phonetic Applications of the Time-Corrected Instantaneous Frequency Spectrogram

from Phonetica

A reassigned or time-corrected instantaneous frequency spectrogram has been developed in the work of a number of practitioners. Here we present a general description of this imaging technique and explore its manifold applications to acoustic phonetics. The TCIF spectrogram shows the locations of signal components with unrivalled precision, eliminating the blurring and smearing of components that hamper the readability of the conventional spectrogram. Formants of vowels and other resonants are shown with great accuracy by observing glottal pulsations at very short time scales with a wideband analysis. A further post-processing technique is also described, by which signal components such as formants, as well as impulsive events, can be effectively isolated to the exclusion of other signal information. When the phonation process is examined this closely, a variety of evidence surfaces which supports recent developments in the theory and computational simulation of aeroacoustic phenomena in speech. Narrowband analysis is also demonstrated to permit pitch tracking with relative ease.

Magnetoencephalography for research of auditory cortex

from Acta Oto-Laryngologica

Conclusion. The results could indicate that, during phylogeny and human ontogeny, the central nervous system has enhanced the speech activity from any other activity even though other frequencies could be relevant for survival. Objective. People of all ages can experience alterations of auditory perception that progressively increase with aging. The whole approach to these alterations needs not only peripheral (cochlear) or brainstem studies but also an analysis of the auditory cortex. In fact, auditory evoked fields (AEF) may contribute to the understanding of the neural correlate of sound awareness. Subjects and methods. The M100 response after pure tone stimulation (five frequencies ranging from 500 to 8000 Hz) was analyzed in a group of nine adult subjects with normal hearing, older than 25 years of age and under 40 years old. Average M100 field intensity was calculated for all magnetoencephalography (MEG) channels in a 60 ms window around the M100 waveform. Results. The results indicate a more intense cortical response to main speech frequencies (0.5 to 2 kHz) as compared with other frequencies not involved in human conversation.

No Fortissimo? Symphony Told to Keep It Down

from the New York Times

They had rehearsed the piece only once, but already the musicians at the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra were suffering. Their ears were ringing. Heads throbbed.

Tests showed that the average noise level in the orchestra during the piece, “State of Siege,” by the composer Dror Feiler, was 97.4 decibels, just below the level of a pneumatic drill and a violation of new European noise-at-work limits. Playing more softly or wearing noise-muffling headphones were rejected as unworkable.

So instead of having its world premiere on April 4, the piece was dropped. “I had no choice,” said Trygve Nordwall, the orchestra’s manager. “The decision was not made artistically; it was made for the protection of the players.”

The cancellation is, so far, probably the most extreme consequence of the new law, which requires employers in Europe to limit workers’ exposure to potentially damaging noise and which took effect for the entertainment industry this month.

Tinnitus and brain MRI findings in Japanese elderly

from Acta Oto-Laryngologica

Conclusion. There is evidence of an inverse association between cerebral infarction and tinnitus in this study. The effects of cerebral infarction on tinnitus could be explained by a neurophysiological model of tinnitus. Objectives. We examined the relationship between tinnitus and brain MRI findings including cerebral infarction, brain atrophy, ventricular dilatation, and white matter lesions. Subjects and methods. This was a cross-sectional population-based study of 2193 subjects aged 41-82 years living in Aichi prefecture, Japan. Detailed questionnaires, pure tone audiometry, and brain MRI were performed. Results. After adjusting for potential confounders in a multiple logistic analysis, cerebral infarction was inversely associated with tinnitus (odds ratio (OR)=0.649, 95% confidence interval (CI)=0.477-0.884). Cerebral infarctions of the basal ganglia (OR=0.542), thalamus (OR=0.441), and pons (OR=0.319) were especially associated with tinnitus. Brain atrophy, ventricular dilatation, and white matter lesions had no significant effects on the prevalence of tinnitus.

Popular Ear Drops And Complications Risk? Australia

from Medical News Today.com

Hearing loss and balance disorders can be caused by commonly used antibiotic ear drops if the patient has a perforated eardrum, writes Associate Professor Harvey Coates in the April edition of Australian Prescriber.

Language learning in four bilingual children with down syndrome: A detailed analysis of vocabulary and morphosyntax

from the Canadian Journal of Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology

Bilingualism in children with Down syndrome (DS) is an under-studied topic. Some professionals counsel families to restrict input to a single language for children with DS because there are delays present even when only one language is being learned. The purpose of the current study was to provide more information about the ability of children with DS to learn two languages. Such evidence is important for guiding clinical decisions. The morphosyntactic and vocabulary skills in English and French of four bilingual children with DS were analyzed and compared individually to that of a typically developing bilingual child and a monolingual child with DS. The children in each triad were matched on nonverbal mental age and exposure to a second language. While language delays were evidenced in both languages for the bilingual children with DS, no consistent effect of bilingualism was seen. All four bilingual children with DS were developing functional second language skills. Current input accounted for much of the variability in English versus French language skills. These findings provide families and professionals with information that will assist them in making appropriate decisions for children with DS.

Pediatric cochlear implantation in Canada: Results of a survey

from the Canadian Journal of Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology

This paper presents the results of a survey of Canadian pediatric cochlear implant centres. The survey was conducted in 2006 to determine the number of children who received cochlear implants and to examine trends in pediatric implantation in Canada between 1995 and 2005. All 12 Canadian programs, including nine surgical and three non-surgical centres, returned the questionnaire. The results showed that there has been significant growth in pediatric cochlear implantation since the previous survey was completed in 1995. A total of 1,406 children received implants in Canadian centres in the 11-year time period covered by this survey, with an average of 174 children being implanted annually from 2001 to 2005. Two major trends in recent years include the implantation of children at younger ages and the implantation of children with complex developmental disabilities. Primary issues of interest for clinicians included candidacy issues, outcome measures and bilateral implantation. These data provide baseline information about pediatric cochlear implant service provision that may assist in program planning and resource allocation.

The promise of nonword repetition as a clinical tool

from the Canadian Journal of Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology

Nonword repetition requires the immediate recall of novel word forms such as woogalamic. The task mimics the learning of the phonological form of a new word as one aspect of vocabulary acquisition. Individuals with language learning difficulties typically are poor at repeating nonwords. Children with Specific Language Impairment (SLI) showmarked and pervasive deficits on nonword repetition tasks; this deficit is highly heritable and linked to chromosome 16. Even children with a history of SLI but who score in the average range on language measures continue to have difficulty recalling novel words accurately. Nonword repetition effectively discriminates children with SLI from typically developing monolingual groups, and children learning a second language. The nonword repetition task is a simple, practical tool that can be scored online and easily adapted to the clinic environment. It is likely that the SLI impairment in nonword repetition arises in part due to deficits in phonological knowledge and retention impairing the transfer of new phonological material to the lexicon. Intervention strategies maybe aimed either at enhancing the encoding or retention of new phonological sequences.

BIDIRECTIONAL CROSSLINGUISTIC INFLUENCE IN L1-L2 ENCODING OF MANNER IN SPEECH AND GESTURE: A Study of Japanese Speakers of English

from Studies in Second Language Acquisition

Whereas most research in SLA assumes the relationship between the first language (L1) and the second language (L2) to be unidirectional, this study investigates the possibility of a bidirectional relationship. We examine the domain of manner of motion, in which monolingual Japanese and English speakers differ both in speech and gesture. Parallel influences of the L1 on the L2 and the L2 on the L1 were found in production from native Japanese speakers with intermediate knowledge of English. These effects, which were strongest in gesture patterns, demonstrate that (a) bidirectional interaction between languages in the multilingual mind can occur even with intermediate proficiency in the L2 and (b) gesture analyses can offer insights on interactions between languages beyond those observed through analyses of speech alone.

NIH Offers New Resources on Usher Syndrome, Most Common Cause of Vision and Hearing Loss

from Docuticker

Usher syndrome is the most common genetic condition that affects both hearing and vision. In the United States, about four babies in 100,000 are born with it. The National Institutes of Health, which conducts and sponsors research on Usher syndrome, has two new resources for affected families.

The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) has teamed with the National Eye Institute, both components of NIH, to create a new Web site devoted to Usher syndrome at www.ushersyndrome.nih.gov. The design of the site is simple and uses large type to ease readability for people with low vision. The new Web site offers basic facts about Usher syndrome, resources for patients and families, information on clinical studies, and resources for scientists.

NIDCD also has updated its fact sheet on Usher syndrome. The new version is available online at www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/hearing/usher.asp or in print.

Moving centrally in understanding balance disorders – navigation and balance 2008

from the National Health Service (UK)

For further information contact:

webmaster@baap.org.uk
Where:London
When:17 Oct 2008 09:00 – 17:00