Healthy Aging Newsletter
time to look into hearing aids because I
October 2002 Volume 1, Issue 3
It IS a Big Deal!
everyone to speak louder”. My husband,
who tends to be blunt, said, “just tell her
Clinical Nurse Specialist, Geriatrics
she can’t hear” - but he’s new to the
family and hasn’t quite figured out how
Inside this Issue
ankle, constipation or a headache garner
1 Hearing Loss:
times I have assessed a senior who can’t
doesn’t. Maybe people just learn to live
2 Hearing:
they’re missing? Could you imagine not
wasn’t “ready” for a hearing aid. So,
3 Upcoming Events
TV/radio up to a level that research has
patient ‘thoroughly demented’ because
she couldn’t answer his questions. I had
news? I got to a point where I just went
4 Hearing Loss:
because her hearing “still wasn’t bad
People live with hearing loss everyday –
Special thanks to: members of the HASE
and live well. But, in cases where it can
Team, Joanne Wagg (Canadian Hearing
Society) and Judy Weaver (RVH)
couldn’t participate in a discussion she
for contributing to, and reviewing, this
The Rehabilitation & Complex Continuing
thought I had her. I, the prodigal child
Healthy Aging Program - Royal Victoria Hospital
(just don’t tell my brother and sister I
October 2002 Types of Hearing Loss
members had it). “In presbycusis, high-
Conductive Hearing Loss
drugs, at certain dosages, can be toxic to
How Does the Ear Work?
the ear (ie. Lasix, aspirin, ibuprofen).
Tinnitus, is a high or low pitched outer ear (the pinna) – the part you see Mixed Hearing Loss Sensorineural Hearing Loss
damage in the cochlea. This type of loss
the nerves. Presbycusis , the most Joanne Wagg
prevalent disorder affecting seniors, has
is transferred to a “chain” of three bones
loud noise and heredity (ie. older family
Thanks Joanne!
in the middle ear, known as the hammer (or malleus), the anvil (or incus) and the Some Normal Aging Changes The following are some normal aging changes that can impact hearing:
Outer Ear
? thick, long and coarse hair in men’s outer ear ? ? trapping of earwax (cerumen)
bones to vibrate and they in turn transfer
? elasticity of outer ear ? ? size of outer ear
? elasticity of the ear canal ? ? narrowing of the ear canal
atrophy (? size) of the sebaceuos glands in the ear canal ? ? dry skin in ear canal
? pruritus (? itchy) and dry, hard cerumen
into the cochlea located in the inner
atrophy of the modified apocrine glands ? ? water in cerumen ? dry, hard cerumen
ear. The cochlea is a snail shaped organ
? stiff and ? translucence of the ear drum ? ? movement of the ear drum in response to sound waves ? ? hearing
Middle Ear
the middle ear mostly unaffected by aging except in cases of arthritis or when bone density ? ? ? space between the three bones and ? stiffness ? small conductive
hair cell moves. All nerves cells travel
Inner Ear
? number of myelinated (covered) nerve fibers ? ? speed of impulses ? ? time to
auditory nerve. The auditory nerve is
receive and process information in the brain
breakdown of hair cells in the cochlea ? ? # and movement of hair cells ? ? nerve
impulses resulting from hair movement ? hearing loss at high frequencies
specifically, the auditory cortex in the
atrophy and ? # of cochlear neurons ? ? nerve impulses ? hearing loss at high
frequencies (neural presbycusis), ? tone discrimination, ? voice vocalization ? ? hearing especially when background noise, rapid speech and in a room with poor
? blood supply to the cochlea ? loss of the cochlea’s normal biochemical environment ? hearing loss at high frequencies (metabolic presbycusis) and poor interpretation of sounds ? ? sound/word discrimination
Upcoming Events GERIATRIC GRAND ROUNDS:
GRIEF - Thursday October 31st , 1130-1230
Odds & Ends . . .
ELDER ABUSE - Thursday November 28th , 1130-1230
via videoconference within Simcoe County
“MEETING THE CHALLENGE OF DEMENTIA CARE”
October 24th, 2002 - Army, Navy & Air Force (ANAF) Club
For information: [email protected] “ADVANCE CARE PLANNING”
November 19th, 2002 - Simcoe Manor, Beeton
For information: [email protected] “DEMYSTIFYING DEMENTIA”:
November 7th, 2002 - Sheraton Parkway North
For information: [email protected] “CELEBRATING OUR PAST & CHARTING OUR FUTURE”
25th Annual Geronotological Nursing Association ‘s
November 7th & 8th, 2002 - Hamilton Convention Centre
“GERIATRIC PSYCHIATRY CLINIC DAY”
November 27th, 2002 - Bank of Montreal Institute, North York
For information: Heather Anderson (416) 756-6878
Tell me about ear candling.
wake sleepers, there are vibrating alarm
On some hearing aids there is a
clocks that turn on connected bedside lamps. The Canadian Hearing Society
movable switch with the letters M, T, and O under it. What do the letters stand for?
See their website (www.chs.ca) or call the Simcoe office at (705) 737-3190.
The “M” stands for ‘microphone’ and is
used during regular conversation. “T”
beeswax candle into your ear and light it
What’s the difference between the
stands for ‘telephone’ and used when on
words ‘deaf’, ‘deafened’, and ‘hard of hearing’? What are signs of hearing loss?
According to the Canadian Hearing Society (2001), these terms do not refer
treated patients with complications from
to the type or extent of hearing loss,they
repeat what you’ve said or talk louder
ear candling – burns to the outer ear and
actually refer to the person’s preferred
ear canal, ear canals being plugged with
type of communication. ‘Deaf’ refers to
“Waxy -eared folks should have a doctor
communicate. ‘Deafened’ refers to
those who have lost all hearing and rely
What home gadgets are there for people with hearing loss?
sign language. ‘Hard of Hearing’
refers to people who have mild to severe
they can’t hear the conversation. Some
hearing loss. They use their voice, their
because they can’t enjoy the interaction
October 2002 Did You Know . . . The Canadian Hearing Society did
a coast-to-coast telephone survey Decibel (dB) Levels 170 dB = firecracker detonating near head 160-170 dB = shotgun, high-powered rifle,
1. Protect your ears in the workplace. 155 dB = toy cap gun firing near ear 120 dB = sound level some stereos can
More than 50% of adults over age 103.4 dB = avg. sound level at rock concert 65 have hearing loss Noise Related Hearing Loss
2,100 out of 35,000 cochlear neurons are lost every decade
2. Protect your ears at home and during recreational activities. Coren
Clark & Bohne (1999), the ear can be
with earwax, normal hearing is still
1. “High level, short duration exposures
95%, significant conductive hearing loss can occur. A simple shift in the
this increase occurs also rises with age.
apart” (p. 1658). This type of ‘acoustic Exostoses are benign growths of the bony ear canal resulting from trauma’ occurs rapidly and can lead to
is the point at which people feel most at
2. Noise-induced hearing loss (vs. Hearing aids transmit amplified sound into the ear canal and
work. Cochlear implants (think
energy into electrical impulses and deliver them directly to the auditory
the extent of time a person is exposed to
that extra notch for your favorite song.
loss occurs in 3 stages. First, excessive
(because they’re always louder than the
Hearing aids can range in cost
with scar tissue because they can’t be
For people with high frequency
sound loss (presbycusis) a
note on a piano). At this point, hearing
3. Have your hearing tested. When
like a prism and form a rainbow” would actually sound like:
“whe- the -u-ight -t-ikes -ai-d-op- i-
Facts from:
hearing loss means you’re in a position
The Canadian Hearing Society Protecting your Hearing Marcincuk & Roland (2002). Geriatric Hearing Loss: Understanding the causes and providing appropriate treatment. Geriatrics . 57(4). Pp. 44-59.
Generic name: the name of the main ingredient of a product. Often similar across a drug group (PIs, penicillins). Brand name: name chosen by each company producing the product. Often more memorable and easier to say. Under patent (~20 years from product registration)Advantages: quality guarantee; encourages research and development of new products within same regulated system.
Credits and License Codes: MF, oral, exhib John D has asserted his right to be identified as the author of this work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1998. This piece of work is fiction and is adult entertainment, and therefore contains material of an adult, explicit nature. If you are under the age required to view this legal y in your jurisdiction, or are easily