1

Hearing loss may cause medical problems Asiflosingone’shearingweren’tbadenough,untreatedhearinglosscantriggerorexacerbateawiderangeofotherconditions,suchasdementiaandcardiovasculardisease.Atthesametime,medicationsusedtotreattheseillnessescanactuallycauseorworsenhearinglossandtinnitus.Becausethisfact,alongwiththeextentofhearinglossitself,isnotwellknown,evenamongmedicalprofessionals,itisuptoustoeducateourselveswhenweneedtoseekhealthcare.“Don’tbeafraid;justbeaware,”counselsBarbaraJenkins,AuD,BCABA.SheisanassociateprofessoratRockyVistaMedicalSchoolandamemberoftheColoradoCommissionfortheDeafandHard-of-Hearing.AttheApril21meetingoftheHLAADenverChapter,shespokeaboutthemedicalimplicationsofhearingloss,basedonpublishedresearchand25yearsofexperienceinherpractice,AdvancedAudiology.Bloodflowiscritical“Theinnerearissosensitivetobloodflowthatlow-frequencyhearinglossisanearlywarningsignofcardiovasculardisease,”DrJenkinssays.Peoplewithcardiovascular

diseasearemorelikelytohavehearingloss,becauseofinadequatebloodflowandbloodvesseltraumaintheinnerear.Low-frequencyhearinglosscanalsobeasymptomofintracranialvascularpathology,orstroke.Diabetes,especiallyType1,alsoaffectsbloodvessels.“Everyonediagnosedwith(Pleaseseepage2)

(Continuedfrompage1)

Meetings: Third Saturday of the month (new) 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Englewood Public Library 1000 Englewood Parkway Englewood, CO 80110 (Hampden and Inca)

Denver Chapter News President: Bernie Steinberg 303-756-1107; berniedan@yahoo.com Vice President: Bob Haigh 303-789-5986; roberth461@comcast.net Secretary: Willa Rose willarose@hotmail.com Treasurer: Miki Seeley 303-757-7302; seeley60@aol.com

May 2018

SpeakerBarbaraJenkins,AuD,andChapterpresidentBernieSteinberg.

2

(Continuedfrompage1)diabetesshouldgetabaselinehearingtest,”DrJenkinssays.Thereasonisthat,overtime,diabetescanaffectnervesandbloodvesselsintheear,soitisimportanttomonitorgradualchangesinhearing.Diabetespatientstendtolosehearingmostofteninthemiddleandhigherfrequencies,shenotes,whicharemostimportantforspeechcomprehension.FearoffallingBothhearinglossandfallsareassociatedwithgrowingolder.Fallsmayresultfromdiminishedbalance,weightchanges,andweakenedbonesandjoints,but,accordingtoDrJenkins,hearinglosscanactuallycausethem.“Theassociationbetweenhearinglossandincreasedchanceoffallingisclinicallysignificant,”shesays.“Untreatedhearinglosstriplestheriskoffalling,evenforthosewithamildhearinglossof25dB.”Partofthereasonismental,shenotes,intheformof“cognitiveoverload.”Ifwecan’thearwell,wespendmoreenergystrugglingtounderstandthesoundsaroundus,reducingthebrain’sresourcestomaintainbalanceandcontrolmotion.Wesufferfromdecreasedspatialawareness.Anynewstimulus,suchasapersonspeakingbehindus,maycatchusoffguardandstartleus.Astartleresponseisagoodwaytolosebalanceandfall.This,andmanyotherproblems,DrJenkinsnotes,canbeaddressedbywearingproperlyprogrammedhearingaids.DepressingnewsDrJenkinspointstoanumberofclinicalstudieslinkinghearinglosstodepressionandothermentalandsocialproblems.“Peoplewithuntreatedhearinglossaremorelikelytodevelopdepressionthantheirhearingpeers,andaresignificantlylessactivethantheirpeerswithhearingaids,”shereports.Alongwithdepression,conditionssuchasanxiety,paranoiaandstresscanaccompanyhearingloss.

Relationshipsmaysuffer,especiallywithinmarriagesandfamilylife.Additionalstudies,shenotes,indicatepeoplewhousehearingaidsarelesslikelytoexperiencethesesymptoms.It’sano-brainerHearinglosscanactuallycausedementia,becausethecognitivechallengesitbringsacceleratethelossofbraincellsnormallyassociatedwithaging.Studiesindicatepeoplewithimpairedhearinglosemorethanacubiccentimeterofbrainmattereachyear,andthattranslatestolossofmemoryandsensoryintegration.DrJenkinsexplains,“Cognitiveabilitiesdecrease40percentfasterforthosewithuntreatedhearinglossthanthosewithtreatedhearinglossornormalhearing,andthisincludesearlyAlzheimer’s.”Aswithotherconditionsrelatedtohearingloss,usinghearingaidscanhelppreservebrainmatterandcognitivefunction.OtotoxicdrugsThemedicationusedtotreatanailmentmaybeadouble-edgedsword.Manydrugs,fromthecommontotheexotic,cancausepermanenthearingloss,impairedbalance,ortinnitus.Amongthemaremanychemotherapyandradiationtherapyagents.Thesepowerfuldrugsmaycausechemicaldamagetocochlearhaircellsintheinnerear,andtonervecellsassociatedwithhearing.Theeffectscantakeuptoayeartomanifest,andtheyaremorecommoninpatientswithafamilyhistoryofhearingloss.DrJenkinsestimatesthatmorethan50percentofchildrenwhoundergochemotherapydevelophearingloss,whichthenaffectstheircomprehensionanddevelopment.Ototoxic—thatis,ear-damaging—cancermedicationsincludecisplatin,carboplatin,bleomycin,vincristine,vinblastine,bromocriptinemethotrexate,andnitrogenmustard.Tohelpidentifyanyhearinglossassociatedwithtreatment,DrJenkins(Pleaseseepage3)

3

(Continuedfrompage2)

advisesanyonefacingchemotherapytohaveahearingtestbeforethetherapybegins.Otherclassesofmedicationswithototoxicpropertiesatcertaindosagesincludethefollowing:•Diuretics•Painrelievers,includingibuprofen,aspirin,andacetaminophen•Anti-depressants•Tranquilizers•Sleepaids.BeawareandbehonestDrJenkinsestimatestheaveragetimefromtheonsetofmildhearinglossuntilsomeonefinallydecidestobetestedisfivetosevenyears.Thatisalongtimeforthe

peoplearoundustobemumblingevermoreincoherently,andforthetelevisionsoundtobefading.Itisaperiodofgrowingstressforfamilymembers,coworkers,andeveryotherpartofourworld.Itcanmeanagrowingsenseofisolation,ofconflictwithlovedones,ofpossiblelossofincomeandfriendships.Nowwealsoknowitcanleadtootherhealthproblems.Ironically,theremedyiscloseathand,effective,andpainless:hearingaids.However,itisnecessarytofirstacknowledgethatpossibilityandseekahearingtest(whichinsurancewillusuallycover).Thattakesself-awareness,perhapsthemostdifficulthurdleofall.AsDrJenkinsnotes,“Alotofpeoplehonestlydon’tthinktheyhaveahearingloss.”—PaulaDeJohn

Groups help make hearing aids affordable Thelatesthearingassistivetechnologyisjustgreat—butit'salsoexpensive.Wecancelebrateeachneworimproveddevice,yetformanypeople,itwillremainunaffordable.Financialhelpofmanykindsisavailable,aslongasyouknowwheretofinditandhavethepatienceanddeterminationtopursueit.A47-pageguidepublishedin2009bytheBetterHearingInstitute(BHI)listslocal,stateandnationalorganizationsthatofferassistance.BHIistheeducationalsubsidiaryoftheHearingIndustriesAssociation,alobbyinggroupformanufacturers.Organizationsofferingassistancerangefromfoundationsandnon-profitgroupstoschoolsandhospitalaffiliates,aswellasEasterSealsandsomeElksClubchapters.Mostgrantscomewithrestrictions,suchasresidencerequirements,incomelevels,andagelimits,suchashelpforchildren.Theguidealsospecifieshowtax-shelteredflexiblemedicalspendingaccountscanbeusedforhearingaids.FindinghelpInDenver,oneresourceistheColoradoCenterforHearing,SpeechandLanguage.TheCCHSLentrynotesitchargesapplicantsareducedrateof$25forahearingtest,afterwhichtheycanapplyforassistanceinpurchasinghearingaids.SpokeswomanKimMoonsaystheprogramissmallbutpopular:"Wehaveawaitinglist."Thereisnoresidencerequirement,butapplicantsmustbecomeclientsandreceivecarefromCCHSLaudiologists.Aidisincomebased,Moonsays,andinmostcases,itcoverstheentirecostofhearingaids.TheColoradoNeurologicalInstitute(CNI)inEnglewoodhelpspatientspayforcochlearimplants.Eligibilityisbasedoninsufficientinsurancecoverage,andpatientsmustfirstbeclearedascandidatesforthesurgery.TheCNIalsoprovidesfundingtohelpcoverthecostsoffollow-uptherapy.Toseeanddownloadthefreeguide,visithttp://www.betterhearing.org/sites/default/files/hearingpedia-resources/Financial_Assistance_for_Hearing_Aids.pdf.

4

Hearing loss means end of career for musician The38-yearrunoftherockbandHueyLewisandTheNewsendedabruptlywhentheleadsingerlostmostofhishearing.Thecause,accordingtotheband’swebsite,wasnotalifetimeofloudmusic,butMeniere’sdisease.OnApril13,TheNewscancelleditsremainingconcertsfortherestof2018,andLewispostedastatementexplaininghiseffortstofindadiagnosisforthesuddenhearingloss.Fanscommentingonthesiteofferedcompassion,andsomeexpressedhopethatthelittle-knowndiseasewouldnowreceivemorepublicattention.FollowingisHueyLewis’sstatement:Twoandahalfmonthsago,justbeforeashowinDallas,Ilostmostofmyhearing.AlthoughIcanstillhearalittle,oneonone,andonthephone,Ican’thearmusicwellenoughtosing.Thelowerfrequenciesdistortviolentlymakingitimpossibletofindpitch.I’vebeentotheHouseEarInstitute,theStanfordEarInstitute,andtheMayoClinic,hopingtofindananswer.ThedoctorsbelieveIhaveMeniere’sdiseaseandhaveagreedthatIcan’tperformuntilIimprove.Therefore,theonlyprudentthingtodoistocancelallfutureshows.Needlesstosay,Ifeelhorribleaboutthis,andwishtosincerelyapologizetoallthefanswho’vealreadyboughtticketsandwereplanningtocomeseeus.I’mgoingtoconcentrateongettingbetter,andhopethatonedaysoonI’llbeabletoperformagain.Sincerely,Huey

Upcoming speakers JoAnneHirsch,communicationstechnologyprogramdirectorfortheColoradoCommissionfortheDeafandHardofHearing,willbeourspeakerfortheMay19meeting.OurspeakerfortheJune16meetingwillbeFrancesOwens,communityrelationsmanagerfortheAnchorCenterforBlindChildren.Field of Dreams TheDenverSertomaClubwillsponsoratwo-daybaseballcamp,called“FieldofDreams”,forchildrenaged7to16withhearingdisabilities.ThecampwillbeJune23-24atAll-StarParkinLakewood.Fordetails,callBobHaighat303-789-5986.Sertomaisanationalserviceorganizationthatprovidesfinancialaidtopeoplewithhearingloss.

90 and counting ChaptermemberEddeeGriest,center,celebratedher90thbirthdayattheApril21meeting.Shownwithherisherdaughter,BecciKucharski,left.

Walk4Hearing news TheDenverChapterwillsponsorateam,theDenverDazzlers,attheWalk4Hearingthisyear.The5K,3.1-milewalkisheldannuallytoenhancepublicawarenessofhearinglossissues,andtoprovidefinancialsupporttolocalchapters.Thisyear'swalkwillbeSunday,June10,2018,atClementPark,7206W.BowlesAve.,Littleton,CO.ToparticipateasamemberoftheDenverDazzlers,gotohttp://hlaa.convio.net,andclickonRegister,thenfollowdirectionstoselectateamandsetagoalfordonations.