Researchers Urge Caution When Buying Noisy Toys

From Science Daily

While Road Rippers Lightning Rods, Let's Rock Elmo and the I Am T-Pain musical microphone might be sought-after gifts this holiday season, parents should ensure that their children don't risk permanent hearing damage by misusing them.

Researchers from UC Irvine's Department of Otolaryngology measured the noise levels of two dozen popular toys in stores and purchased the 10 loudest for precise gauging in a soundproof booth at UC Irvine Medical Center. They found that all exceeded 90 decibels and several reached 100 or more, equivalent to the noise of a chain saw, subway train or power mower.

"Generally, toys are safe if used properly," said Dr. Hamid Djalilian, associate professor of otolaryngology and director of neurotology and skull base surgery. "We tested the sound levels at the speaker and again at 12 inches, which is about the length of a toddler's arm."

But problems can arise if a noisy toy is held too close to the ears, he said: "Children are very sensitive to loud and high-pitched sounds. Unfortunately, hearing loss from noise damage is permanent and not currently curable."

According to the American Academy of Otolaryngology, unprotected exposure to sounds above 85 decibels for a prolonged period can lead to hearing impairment. Two factors contribute to this, Djalilian noted: loudness and duration. The louder a sound is, the less time it takes to cause hearing loss.

He suggested that someone buying a noisy toy for a child pay attention to the speaker's location -- under the item is often better than on top. Djalilian also recommended that an adult hold the toy as a youngster would and listen to its sound. "If it hurts your ears," he said, "then it's probably too loud for a child."

Toys tested / Decibel level at the speaker / Decibel level 12 inches from the speaker:

• Road Rippers Lightning Rods / 108 / 68
• I Am T-Pain microphone / 101 / 64
• Tonka Mighty Motorized Fire Truck / 100 / 69
• Marvel Super Shield Captain America / 98 / 69
• Whac-A-Mole game / 95 / 69
• Tapz electronic reflex game / 95 / 65
• Sesame Street Let's Rock Elmo / 95 / 74
• VTech Magical Learning Wand / 94 / 69
• Toy Story Buzz Lightyear Cosmic Blaster / 93 / 60
• Green Lantern Colossal Cannon / 92 / 67

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Exposure to Secondhand Smoke Associated With Hearing Loss in Adolescents

Exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) is associated with increased risk of hearing loss among adolescents, according to a report in the July issue of Archives of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

Among U.S. children, approximately 60 percent are exposed to SHS, according to background information in the article. Studies have associated exposure to secondhand smoke prenatally or during childhood with various health conditions, from low birth weight and respiratory infections to behavioral problems and otitis media. Children exposed to SHS are more likely to develop recurrent otitis media, the authors note. "Secondhand smoke may also have the potential to have an impact on auditory development, leading to sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL)," they add.

Anil K. Lalwani, M.D., and colleagues from NYU Langone Medical Center in New York City examined the risk factors for SNHL, including SHS, among adolescents, stratified by demographic groups. They included 1,533 individuals from 12 years to 19 years of age who participated in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2005 to 2006. Participants were interviewed about their health status and family medical history, exposure to SHS, and self-recognition of hearing impairment. In addition, they underwent a physical examination, including blood testing for cotinine (a by-product of nicotine exposure), and hearing tests.

Compared with teens who had no SHS exposure, those who were exposed to secondhand smoke exhibited higher rates of low- and high-frequency hearing loss. The rate of hearing loss appeared to be cumulative, increasing with the level of cotinine detected by blood tests. The results also demonstrated that more than 80 percent of participants with hearing loss did not realize they had impairment.

As hearing loss early in life can cause problems with development and functioning, the authors suggest that these results have "significant implications for public health." They note that most adolescents do not receive screening for hearing loss in the absence of risk factors; if further studies replicate these results, they state, SHS could be considered one such risk factor. "Adolescents who are exposed to SHS may need to be more closely monitored for hearing loss," the researchers conclude. "In addition, they should be educated about risk factors for hearing loss, such as recreational or occupational noise exposure and SHS."

Info at Science Daily

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Gene Therapy for Hearing Loss Moves a Step Closer

Boston — Researchers have found long-sought genes in the sensory hair cells of the inner ear that, when mutated, prevent sound waves from being converted to electric signals, a fundamental first step in hearing. The researchers then restored these electrical signals in the sensory cells of deaf mice by introducing normal genes.

The study paves the way for a test of gene therapy to reverse a type of deafness, to be conducted by US and Swiss collaborators. Findings appear in the November 21, 2011 online issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

Sound waves produce the sensation of hearing by jiggling protruding hair-like structures on sensory hair cells in the inner ear. Scientists have long believed that the hair cells carry a protein that converts this mechanical motion into electrical signals. While similar proteins have been identified for other senses, taste, smell, sight, researchers had been unable to find the critical protein required for hearing, in part because of the difficulty of getting enough cells from the inner ear to study.

The research team is co-led by Jeffrey Holt, PhD, Department of Otolaryngology at Children's Hospital Boston, and Andrew Griffith, MD, PhD, of the NIH's National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD).

"People have been looking for more than 30 years," says Holt, also a member of the F.M. Kirby Neurobiology Center at Children's Hospital Boston. "Five or six possibilities have come up, but didn't pan out."

Holt, Griffith, and colleagues found that two related proteins, TMC1 and TMC2, are essential for hearing. They make up gateways known as ion channels, which sit atop the stereocilia and let electrically charged molecules (ions) move into the cell, generating an electrical signal that ultimately travels to the brain.

The gene for TMC1 was previously shown by Griffith and NIDCD-funded collaborators to be mutated in both mice and humans with hereditary deafness. TMC2, the new study found, seems to have a redundant function and may compensate if TMC1 is defective.

The study also found that the same defects affect sensory hair cells in the vestibular system, which underlies the sense of balance. Although TMC1 mutations cause only hearing loss, not balance problems, in humans, mice with defects in both TMC1 and TMC2 are deaf and fail balance tests requiring them to navigate a rotating rod.

The investigators then engineered an adenovirus to carry normal copies of TMC1 or TMC2 into the inner-ear hair cells of mice that had mutations in both genes. Using special techniques developed in Holt's lab, they recorded electrical responses to noise in the sensory hair cells when either TMC1 or TMC2 was added back, where before there had been none. "This is the first time anything like this has been done," says Holt.

But does restoring the electrical response translate into restoration of hearing? Holt and collaborators at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland recently received a $600,000 grant for a gene-therapy trial in mice. The researchers will deliver genes to the inner ear and measure whether electrical signals can be detected in the 8th cranial nerve and whether the animals respond to sound. EPFL will supply newer, safer gene-delivery vectors for testing that could potentially be developed for human trials.

According to the NIDCD, about one in 300 to 500 newborns are born deaf or hard-of-hearing, and it's believed that about half of cases have genetic causes. About 60 genes, including TMC1, are known to be associated with human deafness.

Yoshiyuki Kawashima, Gwenaelle S.G. Geleoc and Kiyoto Kurima were co-first authors. Holt, formerly at the University of Virginia, and Griffith were co-senior authors.

Source: Hearing Review

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Um quinto das crianças até 5 anos tem dificuldades para ouvir

Um estudo recente evidencia que cerca de 20% das crianças em idade pré-escolar - até aos 5 anos - apresentam algum nível de perda auditiva. No grupo que já frequentava a escola - entre 6 e 12 anos -, a incidência de problemas de audição é de 6%.

Os dados do estudo foram recolhidos no Rio de Janeiro entre Outubro de 2010 e Março de 2011, e compreendem as avaliações de 433 crianças até 12 anos.

O trabalho serve de alerta a pais e médicos. "Este resultado mostra que é preciso ter mais cuidado na investigação auditiva em crianças em idade pré-escolar", afirma a autora da pesquisa, a fonoaudióloga Viviane Fontes, acrescentando que a diminuição da capacidade auditiva pode ocorrer por factores como otites, dores de ouvido, alergias respiratórias, sinusite, rinite crónica, perfuração de tímpano, parotidite infecciosa, uso inadequado de cotonete, entre outras.

Segundo a fonoaudióloga, as perdas nem sempre são totais, e muitas podem ser revertidas se identificadas logo. Ela alerta ainda que o problema pode comprometer o desenvolvimento da criança: "Nesta fase, as crianças estão a adquirir a linguagem. Não ouvir bem acarreta dificuldades ao nível do desenvolvimento da fala, escrita e aprendizagem escolar em geral".

Há que ter em conta, também, que nesta faixa etária a criança ainda não se expressa bem, o que dificulta a percepção do problema. Por outro lado, a forma de diagnóstico mais comum, a audiometria, é um teste que exige alguma colaboração, pelo que é mais eficaz em crianças mais velhas. Para diagnosticar as perdas auditivas, o melhor é o "teste da orelhinha".

Há alguns sinais aos quais se deve prestar atenção, nomeadamente:

- Quando as crianças falam muito alto

- Quando precisam de ser chamadas várias vezes até dirigirem a sua atenção para quem as chama

- Quando permanecem frequentemente com a boa aberta

- Quando coçam frequentemente os ouvidos.

Informação acedida e adaptada a partir de WinAudio

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Seven Tips to Better Communication by Arlene Romoff

Holiday season can be especially difficult for people with hearingloss. Here are Seven Tips to Better Communication,

- for those with hearing loss

- for those who contact in the daily life with people with hearing loss, and that can also improve their communicative processes.

1. Realize that large social groups, especially around a large dining room table, are one of the most difficult environments for a person with a hearing loss.

Be kind to yourself. Focus on the positive things that you can do, and not on the negatives of what you have difficulty doing. Think the glass is half full, not half empty.

2. It’s easier to talk with people one-on-one in a quiet environment than in a noisy living room. So:

• Find a favorite friend or relative, and move the conversation into a quiet room, or a quieter corner. Or play a game or read a story to a child, if that’s an option.
• Help out in the kitchen where there are usually less people gathered. And if you help with some preparations, you'll be doing something besides trying to hear

3. When sitting down to dinner, make sure you choose a seat that is best for you!

Here are some seating suggestions:

• If you have a “better side,” seat yourself so that most people are on that side. • Seat yourself next to a person you usually have the least difficulty hearing or lipreading (avoid those folks with bushy mustaches and beards!)
• Seat yourself next to someone who usually has the patience to clue you in on what the conversation is about, or the punch lines you'll miss.
• Try not to seat yourself facing a window because the glare could make it difficult to see people's faces.
• Ask your host to turn off any background music during dinner. And if a football game is blaring from a TV, turn it off or if that’s not an option, set it on mute.
• Remember to be assertive about your needs! Pleasant and polite, but assertive!

4. Conversation tips:

• It’s inevitable that you will not be able to hear the conversation with many people talking and laughing at once. Content yourself with speaking with the people on either side of you.
• If you start a conversation, then you’ll know what the topic is, so it will be easier to follow.
• If you miss something, try to ask only for the part you missed, instead of just saying “what?”
• Expect that there will be jokes that you will not hear, so you will find yourself sitting at a table where everyone is laughing except you. Stay calm—you have a few options: — ask the person next to you to tell you what was so funny — ask the person next to you to remember what was so funny so they can tell you later. — say “excuse me” to everyone at the table, and ask for the joke to be repeated so you can get it too. Remember that if you do this with a pleasant attitude, then people will usually want to help you out.

5. After–dinner strategies:

• Volunteer to help out in the kitchen to get yourself away from that dining table with all the conversations and jokes you’re having trouble following. Do not offer to wash the dishes! This will put your back to everyone in the kitchen and you won't be able to lipread. Offer to dry the dishes or put food away. Or just keep everyone company.
• Offer to wash the dishes if you want to take time out from trying to hear everyone, and you still want to feel useful.

6. To drink or not to drink?

Some people's lipreading skills tend to get worse when they drink. Some people's lip-reading skills tend to get better when they drink because they're more relaxed. And, of course, there are pros and cons of drinking that impact on mood. Be aware of what works best for you. And remember, if you do drink, do so responsibly and never drink and drive.

7. Assistive listening devices.

There are assistive listening devices, such as personal amplifiers and auxiliary microphones that can help you hear in noisy environments. These can work either in conjunction with your hearing aid or cochlear implant, or directly into your ears. They have been particularly helpful for older relatives who are left out of the loop in large family gatherings.

Best wishes for a wonderful holiday season!

Info at Seven Tips for Better Communication

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40% dos portugueses expostos a níveis demasiado elevados

"Quatro em cada dez portugueses estão expostos a níveis demasiado elevados de ruído ambiente, defendeu um especialista, referindo que é prejudicial para a saúde ouvir continuamente barulho do tráfego ou de máquinas, mas também música alta nas discotecas e auscultadores.

A exposição ao ruído ambiente deriva fundamentalmente das vias de tráfego ferroviário, aéreo e rodoviário, mas o presidente da Sociedade Portuguesa de Acústica apontou que há outro tipo de ruído "incomodativo", como o funcionamento dos bares e cafés, principalmente à noite, ou o ruído nos locais de trabalho.

O especialista aponta ainda as situações em que os jovens estão expostos a ruídos de elevada intensidade, como nas discotecas, nos concertos ou com o uso contínuo de auscultadores, o que com repetição ao longo do tempo, pode originar uma perda de audição."

Notícia acedida em iOnline

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Ruído rouba um milhão de anos de vida saudável

Estudo sobre o impacto da poluição sonora diz que o barulho dificulta o sono a um quinto dos europeus

Um estudo sobre o impacto da poluição sonora na Europa divulgado ontem pela Comissão Europeia revela que o ruído rouba um milhão de anos de vida saudável por ano. O trabalho realizado em colaboração com a Organização Mundial de Saúde conclui que um em cada três europeus sente-se perturbado pelo barulho durante o dia e um quinto tem dificuldades em dormir devido ao ruído dos carros, comboios e aviões. "O ruído ambiental deve ser considerado não só como causador de incómodo mas como uma preocupação de saúde pública", lê-se no relatório.

A análise converte o impacto do ruído em anos perdidos de vida saudável ou devido a morte prematura. Segundo o relatório, o ruído anual na Europa rouba 61 mil anos de vida saudável com o aparecimento de doenças do coração, provoca 45 mil anos de dificuldades cognitivas nas crianças, 903 mil anos de perturbações do sono, 22 mil anos de zumbido nos ouvidos e 903 mil anos de incómodo. Tudo somado, dizem os investigadores, significa que todos os anos se perde pelo menos um milhão de anos de vida saudável nos países da Europa Ocidental. Dividindo pela esperança média de vida actual, dá mais de 13 mil vidas.

texto de Marta Reis, acedido em iOnline

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