Oticon Launches Ruby Hearing Aid for Budget-Conscious Patients
For consumers returning to work and social activities in an uncertain economic climate, the newest addition to Oticon’s line of technology offers a combination of “sound quality, sought-after features, and affordability,” according to an announcement from the company. The new Oticon Ruby “sets a new standard in the essential category, delivering great sound quality, hassle-free rechargeability, and easy wireless connectivity in one complete solution—all within the reach of today’s budget-conscious patients.”
Powered by the Velox S platform, Oticon Ruby introduces the new SuperShield feedback management system that “helps prevent feedback before it occurs, so patients can enjoy hearing without interruptions from unwanted whistling and squealing.” For patients who want the convenience of rechargeable batteries, a new lithium-ion rechargeable option helps provide a full-day’s* charge in a few hours. Bluetooth connectivity helps enable patients to connect to smartphones and other modern devices to stream audio and music directly to their hearing aids.
“After experiencing this time of social distancing, consumers recognise the value of easy access to modern technologies to stay connected with family, friends, and business colleagues,” said Don Schum, PhD, Vice President of Audiology for Oticon, Inc. “Phone calls, video chats, and other virtual connections have become their lifeline to the world. These connections are enhanced with better hearing. At the same time, despite the start of an economic recovery, some patients may be more careful about spending. Oticon Ruby allows practitioners to offer patients looking for sought-after features, like rechargeability and easy wireless connections, a quality solution at a more affordable price.”
Like all Oticon wireless hearing aids, Oticon Ruby is compatible with Oticon RemoteCare, a new telehealth solution that allows hearing care professionals to follow up online with patients to remotely adjust and fine-tune hearing aids in a virtual appointment. For select patients who have valid audiograms, first fit with Oticon RemoteCare allows hearing care professionals to fit new hearing aids remotely.
Honiton hearing centre
Oticon Ruby and all Oticon hearing aids use BrainHearing technology to “help support the brain in making sense of sound and enable patients to participate in challenging listening environments.” The Velox S platform powers the new SuperShield technology to analyse incoming sound levels, identify feedback, and prevent whistling before it occurs.
Oticon Ruby miniRITE R rechargeable hearing aids offer a full day* of power with an overnight charge. The charger helps provide a stable, reliable magnetic connection for charging that delivers power throughout the day, including streaming, with a three-hour charging time. A 30-minute recharge provides an additional six hours of power, according to Oticon.
With 2.4 GHz Bluetooth low-energy technology, Oticon Ruby helps deliver “easy wireless connectivity with low battery consumption to a wide range of devices such as smartphones, audio or music streams in stereo to both hearing aids from Bluetooth-connected mobile phones, MP3 players, PCs, and more.” Patients can pair Oticon Ruby with multiple TV Adapters and use the Oticon ON App to stream from any TV. The Oticon ON App also lets patients adjust volume, switch settings, check battery level, and access features such as Find My Hearing Aid and Oticon HearingFitness.
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Oticon Ruby is available in a full lineup of styles, including miniRITE, miniRITE T (telecoil), miniRITE R (rechargeable), BTE and BTE Power Plus, and five popular colours. Oticon Ruby is compatible with Oticon CROS hearing aids.
*Lithium-ion performance varies depending on hearing loss, lifestyle, and streaming behaviour
Source: Oticon
Image: Oticon
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Apple Takes Another Step Toward Hearing Aid Functionality
On Monday, June 22, Apple introduced its latest operating system, iOS14, which includes —among many new features—a substantial move towards its AirPod Pros becoming a hearing-aid-like device. Almost buried as an afterthought at the bottom of Apple’s IOS New Features Preview are identical entries in the “Airpods” and “Accessibility” sections that say:
Headphone Accommodations
This new accessibility feature is designed to amplify soft sounds and adjust certain frequencies for an individual’s hearing, to help music, movies, phone calls, and podcasts sound more crisp and clear.Headphone Accommodations also supports Transparency mode on AirPods Pro, making quiet voices more audible and tuning the sounds of your environment to your hearing needs.
Hmmm…sounds a lot like a basic description of wide dynamic frequency compression (WDRC) or AGC, doesn’t it? Abram Bailey of Hearing Tracker, who broke the news yesterday, stated “This is the extremely exciting part, as it indicates that AirPods can now essentially be used to provide typical hearing aid functionality; applying personalised amplification to make it easier to hear those around you.” Bailey went on to show how the headphone accommodations use a custom audio setup with a listening test that generates an “audiogram” from the Apple Health app that “seems to indicate that the AirPods Pro will be capable of providing a very fine-tuned custom amplification experience, based on the audiogram (pitch-by-pitch hearing abilities) unique to the user.”
It should be acknowledged that Apple has for many years been developing hearing-aid-related features, including Live Listen for hearing aids and cochlear implants in 2014 (and later for AirPods and the Earpods), in addition to speech audiometry and speech-in-noise packages for developers, noise warning apps for its WatchOS, and more. The company sold more than 60 million Airpods in 2019, compared to about 15 million hearing aids worldwide for the entire hearing industry (4.2 million units in the US). Apple’s Wearables, Home and Accessories division had the most significant year-on-year growth for the company last year, with its sales increasing 41% thanks to the Airpod and Apple Watch, and the tech-giant owns an enviable 36.5% of the wearables market, according to CompareCamp. Mind you, this includes the “hearables” market that Nick Hunn predicted earlier this year will reach $80 billion a year by 2025.
As Paul Dybala, PhD, AuD, of AudiologyDesign points out in a recent LinkedIn post about Apple and its threat to the hearing industry, “If none of this impresses you, buy a pair of AirPod Pros and turn on the Active Noise Cancelling feature. Then change them over to Transparency Mode and listen further. Once you wipe your jaw off the floor, continue reading. Take your time, I’ll wait…” However, he then goes on to point out that hearing loss is widely viewed as a healthcare problem that should be addressed by a hearing healthcare professional, as shown in a 2017 survey by a study he did with colleague Brande Plotnick at Healthy Hearing.
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As a side-note, I’ve personally tried several of the products and hearing tests available in some of the better PSAPs. As one example, Alango Technology’s BeHear app did an impressive job of replicating an audiogram of my own mild sloping hearing loss and tailoring the sound to suit my preferences. The idea of an app doing this also reminded me of a September 2018 Hearing Reviewarticle by James Jerger, PhD, who—after describing three basic forms of automated audiometry—wrote:
“The most important issue is to catch up with the rest of the automated world…In spite of the many examples of successful automated systems summarised above, I suspect that there will be little further progress in the actual clinical use of automated audiometry of any variety until clinicians become part of the solution. It goes back to their initial educational experience. If the only procedure they learn as students is the manual Hughson-Westlake method on a conventional audiometer, it is unlikely that they will be easily diverted from that familiar path, sophisticated technology notwithstanding. PhD and AuD students—in addition to practicing clinicians—need to understand that automated audiometry can be carried out by less credentialed personnel, resulting in time and cost savings in a clinical setting. It is apparent this testing is moving into the digital/consumer realm [with the link going to Apple’s WDDC 2018 video that includes a demonstration of speech audiometry].
The point is professional hearing healthcare is so much more than automated tests and apps. As Dr Dybala notes in his article, it’s about assessing an often-complex medical problem and applying all of the tools available to tailor an individual solution that works for the patient in all kinds of listening situations, including (and especially) noise. However, as shown by Apple and others, the world of hearables with their automated testing and applied amplification should help millions of consumers make their first moves toward professional hearing care.
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ChatableApps announced the launch of “the world’s first universal hearing aid, using neuroscience-led artificial intelligence to enable those suffering from hearing loss to hear one-to-one conversations clearly, using an everyday smartphone and a standard pair of earbuds.”
Hearing loss affects 37.5 million adults in the US* and the World Health Organization (WHO) has stated that 466 million** people globally have ‘disabling hearing loss,’ with this expected to reach 900 million by 2050. However, due to the high cost of traditional hearing aids and lack of inclusion in medical insurance, many of those suffering are currently going untreated.
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Chatable Hearing Aid (Photo: Business Wire)
Serial entrepreneur Mark Cuban, who provided early investment in the technology, said: “Chatable is using AI to address growing health care inequality by providing an affordable hearing aid app that helps with conversation.”
Founder and chief scientist at ChatableApps, Dr Andrew Simpson (PhD) has devised a “brand-new way of thinking about AI which reverse engineers the neural processes of the hearing brain and implements them as AI,” according to the company’s announcement.
“Putting an auditory cortex on a smartphone has been a dream for a long time. As far as I know, this is the most advanced real-time AI that has ever gone on a phone,” said Simpson. “It’s been a long road, but our preclinical trials reveal something of a medical breakthrough: A hearing aid that doesn’t need hearing tests and going straight into the hands of people who can’t afford a hearing aid.”
The performance levels Simpson’s approach achieves reportedly “surpass those of a traditional hearing aid when it comes to one-to-one conversation.” The company says this was confirmed in pre-clinical trials where “86% reported that the ChatableApps universal hearing aid was better for conversation than their traditional hearing aid.”
Despite the complex science and AI at work in the app, the company describes its user interface as “simple.” Once downloaded, the user moves two sliders up and down to find their desired balance. The volume boost slider helps enable “clear and loud voice, while the background noise slider removes background noise, allowing users to hear conversations no matter where they are.”
“Our unique ground-up AI makes our universal hearing aid the first app capable of addressing the global hearing epidemic,” said Giles Tongue, ChatableApps CEO. “Following successful preclinical trials, we have decided to launch immediately due to urgent demand from audiologists to help people struggling because of coronavirus. With many unable to lip-read due to face masks or unable to visit a hearing clinic in an emergency, our app provides a lifeline that will help people communicate.”
The ChatableApps Universal Hearing Aid app is available to download now on iOS and Android. The app is free to access, with the option to subscribe to unlock maximum voice amplification and reduction of background noise. The full version is available for $12.99 /monthly, $79.99 /annual.
Coronavirus lockdown has been hard for everyone. People are worried about safety, stuck inside or going out to work in a pandemic – and cut off from family and friends.
Most people have the option of speaking to friends on the phone or with a video call at a moment’s notice. But for the 12 million people in the UK who are deaf or who have some kind of hearing loss, this option is much less viable.
Clara O’Shea, a trainee dentist with hearing loss, said the restrictions had left her feeling isolated.
She told the Standard: “Obviously we’re all in lockdown but it can probably be even lonelier for people with hearing loss. We can’t necessarily just pick up the phone and speak to our friends.
“When you struggle to hear, it makes you physically exhausted,” she added.
Conversations at a distance can be a challenge for people with hearing loss (AP)
Some of the social ties that help the deaf community combat loneliness in normal times have also been severed by the lockdown.
Liam O’Dell, a deaf activist and journalist, said: “Deaf social clubs, which are a big part of the community… have had to shut things down completely or move things online, which has had a really detrimental impact on people.”
But he added that another isolating factor for people with hearing loss was the lack of accessible information.
The BBC uses a British Sign Language interpreter overlaid on its broadcast of the daily coronavirus briefing and Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has one, but the Downing Street briefings were criticised for doing the same. Activists had claimed it breached an equalities law, and launched legal proceedings last month.
The Government has said it is committed to getting health information to everyone in the UK, regardless of disability.
“I think for a lot of people they probably don’t want to talk about the dreaded… coronavirus but we also have to talk about it.
“When other people…. have the privilege of getting the latest information, deaf people are probably still falling behind because they don’t have that access.”
Roger Wicks, policy and campaigns director for charity Action on Hearing Loss, agreed.
People with hearing loss may be feeling especially isolated during coronavirus lockdown(Getty Images)
He said: “Briefings have to be accessible – it’s very important that there’s a British Sign Language interpreter.”
“We have to make health services accessible to all.”
And a recent development may worsen the situation for the UK’s deaf people.
The UK has been slower than many other countries in asking people to wear face masks and coverings. But the Government recently advised people to cover their faces when in busy places, including public transport, and masks are becoming more and more visible on the street.
The usefulness of face masks remains unclear – but for many deaf people and those with hearing loss who rely on lipreading to hold a conversation, they present a new challenge.
Louise Goldsmith, a profoundly deaf blogger, told the Standard that the growing use of face masks – and the need to keep two metres away from other people – was limiting her independence.
She said: “I was waiting in the queue for the checkout at the supermarket and the person behind the till told me to come forward.
“But because they were wearing a mask, I couldn’t understand them and I was just standing there for ages. It was pretty embarrassing.”
Action on Hearing Loss is pushing the Government to clarify what kind of face coverings people can wear that will have less of an effect on people with hearing loss – including masks with clear panels over the mouth.
These clear masks are not appropriate for medical use and are not available in the UK at the moment, Action on Hearing loss said.
And Ms Goldsmith said that she doubted that the clear masks would be much use.
“I’ve heard that when people speak and breathe the masks can fog up and it gets much harder to read their lips,” she said.
She added: “But it’s a good start and hopefully something to build on in future.”
Deafness is sometimes called “the hidden disability” and the impact of coronavirus lockdown on people with hearing loss seems to have gone largely unnoticed.
But neither Action on Hearing Loss nor other deaf activists are demanding an end to the lockdown or for people to stop wearing face masks. They just want the Government and everyone else in the UK to speak more clearly.
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Honiton hearing stockist of Oticon hearing aids in Devon
For consumers returning to work and social activities in an uncertain economic climate, the newest addition to Oticon’s line of technology offers a combination of “sound quality, sought-after features, and affordability,” according to an announcement from the company. The new Oticon Ruby “sets a new standard in the essential category, delivering great sound quality, hassle-free recharge-ability, and easy wireless connectivity in one complete solution—all within the reach of today’s budget-conscious patients.”
Powered by the Velox S platform, Oticon Ruby introduces the new SuperShield feedback management system that “helps prevent feedback before it occurs, so patients can enjoy hearing without interruptions from unwanted whistling and squealing.” For patients who want the convenience of rechargeable batteries, a new lithium-ion rechargeable option helps provide a full-day’s* charge in a few hours. Bluetooth connectivity helps enable patients to connect to smartphones and other modern devices to stream audio and music directly to their hearing aids.
“After experiencing this time of social distancing, consumers recognize the value of easy access to modern technologies to stay connected with family, friends, and business colleagues,” said Don Schum, PhD, Vice President of Audiology for Oticon, Inc. “Phone calls, video chats, and other virtual connections have become their lifeline to the world. These connections are enhanced with better hearing. At the same time, despite the start of an economic recovery, some patients may be more careful about spending. Oticon Ruby allows practitioners to offer patients looking for sought-after features, like rechargeability and easy wireless connections, a quality solution at a more affordable price.”
Like all Oticon wireless hearing aids, Oticon Ruby is compatible with Oticon RemoteCare, a new telehealth solution that allows hearing care professionals to follow up online with patients to remotely adjust and fine-tune hearing aids in a virtual appointment. For select patients who have valid audiograms, first fit with Oticon RemoteCare allows hearing care professionals to fit new hearing aids remotely.
Complete Solution with All the Essentials
Oticon Ruby and all Oticon hearing aids use BrainHearing technology to “help support the brain in making sense of sound and enable patients to participate in challenging listening environments.” The Velox S platform powers the new SuperShield technology to analyse incoming sound levels, identify feedback, and prevent whistling before it occurs.
Oticon Ruby miniRITE R rechargeable hearing aids offer a full day* of power with an overnight charge. The charger helps provide a stable, reliable magnetic connection for charging that delivers power throughout the day, including streaming, with a three-hour charging time. A 30-minute recharge provides an additional six hours of power, according to Oticon.
With 2.4 GHz Bluetooth low-energy technology, Oticon Ruby helps deliver “easy wireless connectivity with low battery consumption to a wide range of devices such as smartphones, audio or music streams in stereo to both hearing aids from Bluetooth-connected mobile phones, MP3 players, PCs, and more.” Patients can pair Oticon Ruby with multiple TV Adapters and use the Oticon ON App to stream from any TV. The Oticon ON App also lets patients adjust volume, switch settings, check battery level, and access features such as Find My Hearing Aid and Oticon HearingFitness.
Oticon Ruby is available in a full lineup of styles, including miniRITE, miniRITE T (telecoil), miniRITE R (rechargeable), BTE and BTE Power Plus, and five popular colors. Oticon Ruby is compatible with Oticon CROS hearing aids.
*Lithium-ion performance varies depending on hearing loss, lifestyle, and streaming behavior.
Source: Oticon
Image: Oticon
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Starkey Expands Remote Programming Feature to More Hearing Aid Users
In response to the ongoing challenges facing hearing care providers and their patients amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Starkey announced that it has made telehealth technology available to “even more hearing aid users.” Effective immediately, ‘Hearing Care Anywhere’ remote programming is now enabled across all technology tiers of Starkey’s Livio, Livio AI, and Livio Edge AI hearing aids. The change is said to allow more patients to receive care from their homes and gives hearing professionals the ability to conduct appointments despite social distancing.
“This is a very difficult time for the majority of us in the hearing industry,” said Starkey President Brandon Sawalich. “When we developed the Hearing Care Anywhereremote programming feature, we knew it would provide hearing healthcare providers with added convenience and efficiency, but we never imagined the important role it would play in such an unprecedented situation. We are so proud that our relentless dedication to staying on the cutting-edge of hearing technology is helping patients hear better at a time when clear communication is so critical.”
Through this latest update, even patients whose devices were not originally configured for remote programming are now able to access this feature. Using the Thrive app, patients can send requests to their hearing providers, who are then able to make fine-tuning adjustments to optimize hearing aid performance remotely. This new measure enhances patient safety by reducing the need for an in-office visit.
“For many clinics, up to 30% of appointments are for minor adjustments,” said Starkey’s Chief Innovation Officer Dave Fabry, PhD. “In the past, clinicians needed to initiate remote programming via the Inspire software during face-to-face visits. Today, those adjustments can be handled remotely through Hearing Care Anywhere.”
“Since early on during the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve had to balance the dilemma of protecting our patients while ensuring their hearing devices are performing optimally,” said Terence Limb, AuD, of Kirkland, Wash. “In the past, we didn’t always enable Hearing Care Anywhere in Inspire. This update enables me to continue to engage with patients during this difficult time. Moreover, it will change the way that we can better serve patient needs in the future.”
For more information on these new updates to Hearing Care Anywhere remote programming, please click here.
Source: Starkey
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Today we are looking at something a lot of people have to deal with on a daily and nightly basis. We are talking about Tinnitus.
Below is a link to the BBC News website which shows a musician living with Tinnitus and how he changed the way he dealt with it.
Here at Honiton hearing we can help you with Tinnitus, but only when the Covid19 is behind us and we are once again open.
Isle of Wight musician fights tinnitus with soundscapes
When musician Rupert Brown developed tinnitus aged 22 he thought his life was completely over.
However, by mixing the noise of his tinnitus with natural sounds and music to create a soundscape, he says he’s reduced the noise he hears.
He’s now helping others on the Isle of Wight where he lives.
Tinnitus is the sensation of hearing a sound in the absence of any external sound. One in eight have persistent tinnitus, according to the British Tinnitus Association.
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You can see more on Rupert’s story on BBC Inside Out South on BBC iPlayer here.
Building on the success of “the world’s first Healthable hearing aid,” Livio AI, Starkey announces the release of Livio Edge AI. Livio Edge AI is said to “combine the best of both worlds: industry-leading sound quality and sound processing for challenging listening environments.” With a simple double tap, Edge Mode helps bring “the power of artificial intelligence to a patient’s fingertips, by instantaneously conducting an AI-based analysis of the acoustic environment and making immediate adjustments,” according to the company.
Honiton hearing centre
“As a global leader in innovation, Starkey continues to defy the limits of what others thought was possible,” said Starkey CEO Bill Austin. “By using artificial intelligence, we’ve transformed the hearing aid into a tool that can unlock the ear’s ability to be a source of complex biological information. In doing so, we’re bridging the gap between a patient’s hearing health and their overall health and wellness.”
As part of this new product launch, Starkey introduces “the world’s first 2.4 GHz lithium-ion ITC and ITE custom rechargeable hearing aids.”
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A variety of other new features includes improvements to the usability and performance of the Thrive Hearing Control app, a 2.4 GHz Table Microphone with eight built-in microphones to help users enjoy group settings, and AI for all. This means Livio AI is now available in the 2000, 1600, 1200, and 1000 technology tiers.
“We are proud to be leading the hearing industry at the speed of innovation,” said Starkey President Brandon Sawalich. “Livio AI broke barriers by becoming the first hearing aid to use artificial intelligence to monitor body and brain activity. It even achieved high-profile recognition from the likes of TIME Magazine, but, at Starkey, we don’t rest on our laurels. We continue to push ourselves to make the impossible possible, so we can help people live better lives through better hearing.”
For more information on the new products available now, please click here.
Source: Starkey
Images: Starkey
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Starkey Launches Livio Edge AI and Several Firsts at Hearing Innovations Expo
Starkey Hearing Technologies unveiled its latest hearing aid, the Livio Edge AI, on Thursday, the opening day of the company’s Hearing Innovation Expo, held in Las Vegas and attended by a reported 3400 hearing care professionals from 60 countries. The new hearing aid—which features a 2.4 GHz custom hearing aid with rechargeability option and hands-free connectivity to new popular smartphones like the Samsung Galaxy S10—will be available in North American in February 2020.
Livio AI, featured as one of TIME magazine’s Top-100 best inventions of 2019, is designed to provide exceptional sound quality and hearing in noise in addition to: serving as a fitness app by tracking the number of steps you take each day; offering a “brain health score” based on daily social engagement and active listening; using inertial sensors for fall detection and alerting caregivers; receiving voice commands so Siri can act as your mobile personal assistant; utilising pre-set timely reminders from you to take your medications; translating and transcribing 27 languages; and streaming audio from music and TV shows.
The new Livio Edge AI has been engineered to “go beyond” these features. According to presentations by Starkey CTO and EVP of Engineering Achin Bhowmik, PhD, Chief Audiology Officer Sara Burdak, AuD, and Chief Innovation Officer David Fabry, PhD, the new Livio Edge AI also includes:
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• Edge Mode applies artificial intelligence (AI) for patient-driven, on-demand fine-tuning of the sound environment. The hearing aid user can double-tap on the hearing aid to initiate Edge Mode, which through an environmental analysis of the sound can provide an “extra boost” when in challenging listening situations. A demonstration was provided of a conversation in a noisy stadium where the crowd noise was dampened so a nearby person’s comments could be heard.
• 2.4 GHz custom hearing aids with Li-ion rechargeability, reportedly an industry first. Livio Edge AI is expected to provide 23 hours of hearing and 4 hours of streaming on a 3.5 hours charge.
• Google Pixel and Samsung Galaxy (including S10) phones are added to the connectivity options of smart-phones with direct streaming to the new Livio Edge AI Premium.
• Voice-activated and tap-activated commands can directly control the hearing aid by tapping and talking (ie, for increasing volume or changing listening modes). It can also provide access to Siri, the “intelligent assistant” for iPhone users. Using the Thrive Assistant feature in the Thrive app, patients have instant access to a world of information at their fingertips, getting in-ear and on-screen notifications for tasks like taking medications or a reminder to pick up milk on the way home from work.
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Self-Check Baseline: Patient-centered care is becoming patient-driven care. With Self-Check, the patient can perform a diagnostic test of the hearing aid system anytime, on their own.
Sara Burdak and David Fabry explain the key features of Starkey’s new Table Mic.
Additionally, Starkey introduced its Table Mic, a handy remote microphone that can be placed on a table and either set to automatic mode or a manual mode where the user can direct the beamformer in up to two directions. As with other remote mics, the Table Mic is capable of improving the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) by 12-15 dB, compared to 3-4 dB by the industry’s best digital noise reduction hearing aid algorithms.
Starkey also introduced three apps or app modifications:
• Thrive, the current user-control app for Livio AI hearing aids, has undergone a makeover designed to give it a cleaner look and feel. The new streamlined user interface is intended to make the Livio experience more transparent and easier for the hearing aid wearer.
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• ThriveCare is an app for the caregivers of the hearing aid user so they can stay informed in real-time about the user’s hearing and safety status; it is designed to provide peace of mind for care providers and to help the hearing aid wearer live independently and safely. For example, it can monitor and report on the hearing aid wearer’s number of steps, use of the hearing aids, and time spent in social interaction. Dr Fabry also pointed out that ThriveCare data can be shared with friends and colleagues who also have Livio hearing aids in order to compete in the various metrics monitored by the hearing aid.
• Balance Builder is a new app intended to help improve patients’ balance and reduce risks of falls through a series of at-home interactive exercises. The user is guided through balance exercises and workouts, based on head movements detected from sensors in Livio Edge AI hearing aids. As a “trainer” app for balance, it is designed to strengthen the user’s balance, stability, and gait, and help prevent falls and improve user confidence.
Dr Bhowmik stressed that Livio AI is—first and foremost—a hearing aid dedicated to providing the best sound experience in the hearing industry. In an interview with Hearing Review, he was careful to emphasize what shouldn’t be lost in all the new (and upcoming) features is the sound processing and the advancements made in helping people to understand spoken language. With Edge Mode, for example, the device uses AI and multiple parameters in the hearing aid that are unique to the acoustic snapshot of the current listening environment.
Looking to the Future of Healthables
“The ear is the new wrist—except better,” says Bhowmik, noting that having sensors within the ear canal opens up a wealth of possibilities for monitoring body and health-related functions, even beyond the current activity tracker and sensors found in Livio hearing aids.
Starkey CTO and EVP of Engineering Achin Bhowmik, PhD, explains Edge AI during the Starkey Hearing Innovation Expo.
Dr Bhowmik explained that several of the world’s largest companies—including Apple, Intel, IBM, Google, and Microsoft—are working on the “edge of AI.” Intelligence is moving towards edge devices with increased computing power which combine sensor data and AI algorithms that drive machine learning. “Edge AI, simply put, is an implementation of artificial intelligence that builds on distributed computing,” said Bhowmik. “We have a processor in the hearing aid itself, and we connect to the power of an iPhone or Android phone, which is connected to the Cloud [which has enormous computing power]. We connect smart devices to the smart Cloud; unlike traditional AI, where the cloud is smart, but the device not so much. To do Edge AI, we have to work with the best in the field to re-architect the AI engine—the machine infrastructure [that brings] the technology to the edge.” Bhowmik says we are seeing only the beginnings of this technology emerge today. He believes that, while other companies in the hearing industry will also start to employ this type of machine learning, Starkey will already be moving to the next level at that point.
He also offered some glimpses of “cutting-edge AI” development in the near-future, extending Livio Edge AI’s sensor-based “healthable” technology for monitoring:
• Cardiovascular health. The current Livio AI contains a heart-rate sensor; however, due to problems associated with impression-taking/earmolds and the sensor contacts, it has not been implemented yet. Starkey expects to be able to add this soon to Thrive as part of its fitness tracking. Other areas being looked into are oxygen (O2) saturation in the blood and blood pressure.
• Body temperature. A built-in sensor to monitor core body temperature.
• Visual assistance. With the help of some kind of camera or optical device, the hearing aid can identify and describe what the hearing aid wearer is seeing;
• Emotion sensing. A capability to detect if the wearer is happy, sad, depressed, relaxed, etc, and offer possible options, if needed.
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• Voice analysis. The capability for the hearing aid to “sense” if you’re feeling stressed or in need of help, and ask you discreetly if you’re in need of assistance.
Look for the upcoming report on the Starkey Innovations Expo and Hearing Review’s interview with Dr Bhowmik in a future edition of HR online news.
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Hearing Aids May Lead to Lower Rates of Dementia, Depression, and Anxiety
According to a report, hearing Aids May Lead to Lower Rates of Dementia, Depression, and Anxiety
This article appeared September 2019 in the Hearing review
Older adults who get a hearing aid for a newly diagnosed hearing loss have a lower risk of being diagnosed with dementia, depression, or anxiety in the following three years, and a lower risk of suffering fall-related injuries, than those who leave their hearing loss uncorrected, a new study finds. A summary of the study’s findings were published on the University of Michigan’s website.
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Yet only 12% of those who have a formal diagnosis of hearing loss actually get the devices—even when they have insurance coverage for at least part of the cost, the study shows. It also reveals gaps in hearing aid use among people of different racial and ethnic backgrounds, geographic locations, and genders.
The findings, made by a University of Michigan team using data from nearly 115,000 people over age 66 with hearing loss and insurance coverage through a Medicare HMO between 2008 and 2016, are published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.
Unlike traditional Medicare, Medicare HMOs typically cover some hearing aid costs for members diagnosed with hearing loss by an audiologist.
Elham Mahmoudi, MBA, PhD, the U-M Department of Family Medicine health economist who led the study, says it confirms what other research has shown among patients studied at a single point in time—but the new findings show differences emerging as time goes on.
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“We already know that people with hearing loss have more adverse health events, and more co-existing conditions, but this study allows us to see the effects of an intervention and look for associations between hearing aids and health outcomes,” she says.
“Though hearing aids can’t be said to prevent these conditions, a delay in the onset of dementia, depression, and anxiety, and the risk of serious falls, could be significant both for the patient and for the costs to the Medicare system.”
Long-term Tracking
Mahmoudi and her colleagues at the U-M Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation looked at anonymous insurance data to perform the study, and looked at the data for each person with hearing loss one year before their diagnosis, and three years after, so they could see only newly diagnosed dementia, depression, anxiety, and fall injuries.
They intend to keep studying further data from this population, to see if the differences in health outcomes continue beyond three years.
The study shows that men with hearing loss were more likely to receive a hearing aid—13.3% compared with 11.3% of women. Only 6.5% of people of Latino heritage received a hearing aid for their hearing loss, compared with 9.8% of African-Americans and 13.6% of whites.
Nearly 37% of people with hearing loss who lived in the north-central part of the country, as designated by the Census Bureau, used a hearing aid, compared with just 5.9% of people in the mountain states.
Differences in Diagnosis
When the researchers looked at the path that patients who received hearing aids took over three years, compared with those who didn’t get the devices, significant differences emerged.
In all, the relative risk of being diagnosed with dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease, within three years of a hearing loss diagnosis was 18% lower for hearing aid users. The risk of being diagnosed with depression or anxiety by the end of three years was 11% lower for hearing aid users, and the risk of being treated for fall-related injuries was 13% lower.
The study also confirms previous studies’ findings that people with hearing loss had much higher rates of dementia, depression, and fall injuries than the general population.
The reasons for this are complicated, and can include loss of social interaction, loss of independence, loss of balance, and less stimulation to the brain. Some researchers also believe that the loss of nerve impulses from the ear to the brain, and loss of cognitive ability leading to dementia, could be part of the same ageing process.
What’s to Come
The study only included individuals who billed their insurance company for part of the cost of their hearing aid, Mahmoudi notes. The coming of FDA-approved over-the-counter hearing aids in 2020 for people with mild to moderate hearing loss could make the devices much more accessible for many people.
But those new devices could also complicate researchers’ ability to study the effects of hearing aids on other health outcomes, if people don’t use insurance coverage and researchers can’t tell if they have one.
“Correcting hearing loss is an intervention that has evidence behind it, and we hope our research will help clinicians and people with hearing loss understand the potential association between getting a hearing aid and other aspects of their health,” says Mahmoudi.
She notes that Medicaid in the state of Michigan is now covering hearing aid testing, fitting, and purchase, since a policy change in 2018, and that it will be important to study impacts in this population as well.
In addition to Mahmoudi, the new study’s authors are IHPI statisticians Tanima Basu, MS and Neil Kamdar, MA, and IHPI members Kenneth Langa, MD, PhD, Michael M. McKee, MD, MPH, Phillip Zazove, MD, and Neil Alexander, MD. Langa and Alexander are professors in the U-M Department of Internal Medicine; McKee and Zazove are assistant professor and chair, respectively, of the U-M Department of Family Medicine. Langa also holds faculty positions in the U-M Institute for Social Research and the VA Ann Arbor Center for Clinical Management Research.
Original Paper: Mahmoudi E, Basu T, Langa K, et al. Can hearing aids delay time to diagnosis of dementia, depression, or falls in older adults? Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. 2019. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/jgs.16109
Source: University of Michigan, Journal of the American Geriatrics Society
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