A survey in 2013 conducted by the Census and Statistics Department involving persons with disabilities and chronic diseases stated that there are 155,200 people who have hearing impairment in Hong Kong.
That accounts to 2.2% of the total population of Hong Kong and 117,600 out of the total 155,200 persons with hearing difficulty are aged 65 or above.
This includes people who perceived themselves as having long-term difficulty in hearing or using specialised hearing aids or rehabilitation tools at the time of survey.
A lot of elderly people lack the financial means to buy hearing aids, which could cost as high as several thousand to several tens of thousand dollars.
In Hong Kong, the government is providing subsidies to elderly people. They pay for the costs of hearing tests and hearing aids.
They impose no upper limit in the scope of application of the Elderly Health Care Voucher Scheme which aims to enhance the safety and quality of life of elderly people.
Hong Kong’s general out-patient clinics (GOPCs) of the Hospital Authority (HA) refers patients with hearing difficulty to the ear, nose and throat (ENT) specialists which shall follow-up according to their clinical conditions and needs. They will provide appropriate hearing assessment and treatment for persons with hearing difficulty.
The Hospital Authority has 29 audiologists and audiology technicians that help provide timely hearing tests and treatment according to the diagnosis made by ENT specialists and the needs of patients.
The Department of Health reviews the manpower requirement from time to time to monitor the service demand. This ensures audiology-related services for everyone who needs it.
Eligible seniors may use health care vouchers to pay for healthcare services provided by healthcare professionals assigned under the Elderly Health Care Voucher Scheme.
This includes hearing assessment services provided by enrolled doctors.
Medical items which are not covered by the standard fees and charges in public hospitals and clinics are provided by the Hospital Authority thru the Samaritan Fund safety net.
They pay for hearing aids, and the replacement of external speech processors of cochlear implants and other accessories.
Patients who needed financial assistance for privately purchased medical items or new technologies required in the course of medical treatment will be referred right away to the Samaritan Fund to get immediate assistance.
Patients who have met the specified clinical requirements will be referred to SF for financial assistance because health care vouchers cannot be used for purchasing products such as medication or medical equipment.
To sum up, the Hong Kong government is really extending all the assistance to their elderly who are most prone to the effects of hearing impairment.
If you think you need a hearing aid, make sure to get a hearing aid prescription. For more details of our hearing test & assessment, and hearing aid services, please contact HK Hearing & Speech Centre.
Source:
HK Hearing & Speech Centre
Specialist of Hearing test & assessment,
and Hearing Aid Prescription
https://www.hkhearingspeech.com
Those born during the years 1981 to 1996 are often referred to as the millennials, or members of the Generation Y. They may either be children of Generation X (born 1965-80), or the Baby Boomers (born 1946-1964) or grandchildren thereof. Their most defining descriptions, however, are that they were the young adults at the turn of the millennium and that they were the first children to have the digital world introduced to them at birth. Thus, they are also otherwise known as the “digital natives”.
Although researches on hearing loss have not been age-disaggregated well, studies in 2014 reported that approximately 15% of American adults (37.5 million) aged 18 and over report some trouble hearing. In 2016, a study reported that among adults aged 20-69, the overall annual prevalence of hearing loss dropped slightly from 16 percent (28.0 million) in the 1999-2004 period to 14 percent (27.7 million) in the 2011–2012 period .
In 2011, millennials were aged 20 to 30 years old.
Stress is another common cause of feeling like one or both ears have experienced hearing loss . “When your body responds to stress, the overproduction of adrenaline reduces blood flow to the ears, affecting hearing.” The millennials have rated their stress level higher than other age group cohorts, also reporting being less able to manage stress than any other generation.
While about 50% of hearing disability can be traced to genetic factors, the other 50 % can be traced to stress due to work issues, including life-work balance, and lifestyle choices although some lifestyles and habits can affect hearing in a positive way, while others can be harmful to hearing and lead to hearing loss . About 71% of young adults with hearing loss without other related conditions (such as intellectual disability, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, or vision loss) were employed showing the effect of work stress on this population.
Lifestyle choices like attending noisy concerts have been reported to cause hearing loss among millennials, too.
If you think your family or you need a hearing aid, make sure to get a hearing aid prescription. For more details of our hearing test & assessment, and hearing aid services, please contact HK Hearing & Speech Centre.
Source:
HK Hearing & Speech Centre
Specialist of Hearing test & assessment,
and Hearing Aid Prescription
https://www.hkhearingspeech.com
The problem with hearing aids is of course whether it is the hearing aid for us and whether or not we need one in the first place. Obviously for this kind of decision, we need an audiologist’s advice.
The health care professional with expertise on hearing loss and, therefore, of hearing aids is called an audiologist.
How can audiologists help those with hearing problems?
There are two problems associated with hearing loss. First, unless a baby is tested for hearing problems at birth, people do not usually detect hearing problems until hearing is already 50 percent damaged; and, second, whether or not we believe there is hope for ever being to hear well again.
First, they can determine the type of problem, the degree of the problem, the probable cause of the problem, the possible relief, and how such relief can be achieved. So perhaps these are the first questions to ask and whether or not a hearing aid is a healthy option.
Second, since they must have knowledge of all products available in the market that can help those with hearing problems, they can professionally present options for treatment and choices of products to go with the solution chosen. Once the decision is to go for a hearing aid, the next question is what hearing devices are available, in the local market or even online. So questions like “should I go visible or invisible?” or “should I go for comfort of for hearing efficiency?” The other obvious question to ask is what to look for in a hearing aid.
There are simply a wide variety of hearing devices to choose from and without a health professional to help make a choice, the hearing problem may get worse . There are also fitting problems to deal with as well as adjustment problems. Making properly-fitted, affordable hearing aids and cochlear implants and providing accessible follow-up services in all parts of the world will benefit many people with hearing loss .
Third, since every treatment ends up with economic considerations, and most insurance already recognize hearing problems as a disability, then questions about insurance coverage and treatment plans must be asked and answered and whether or not counselling is part of the sales service.
If one is clear about all these considerations, then and only then can one can invest on a hearing device.
If you think you need a hearing aid, make sure to get a hearing aid prescription. For more details of our hearing test & assessment, and hearing aid services, please contact HK Hearing & Speech Centre.
Source:
HK Hearing & Speech Centre
Specialist of Hearing test & assessment,
and Hearing Aid Prescription
https://www.hkhearingspeech.com
The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared that acquired hearing loss may be due to excessive noise, including occupational noise such as that from machinery and explosions and recreational exposure to loud sounds such as that from use of personal audio devices at high volumes and for prolonged periods of time and regular attendance at concerts, nightclubs, bars and sporting events . In 2015, WHO warned that 1.1 billion young people (or about 50%) were at risk of hearing loss due to personal listening devices and music venues in which sounds may reach dangerously loud levels for hours on end . Initial studies among children show that the use of portable music player was associated with high-frequency hearing loss.
What affects hearing have something to do with the inner ear. In it is a complicated structure called cochlea which converts sound into electrical signals that are picked up by neurotransmitters mainly to the brain which also converts this into images or information. There are also fine hairs called cilia that are sensitive to different sounds and it is incredibly sensitive to the amplitude of sound waves. Noise can damage hair cells, membranes, nerves, or other parts of the inner ear, all of which may cause temporary or permanent hearing loss but loss of even about 30% of the cilia may produce damage resulting to inner ear baldness that cannot be repaired .
In physics, sound is nothing but a vibration that travels as waves through a medium (air, for example), measurable in terms of amplitude, wavelength, and frequency. This frequency is also called pitch. The amplitude measures the intensity of the sound. Sounds with high amplitude is loud. Other qualities of sound are volume and tone. Very loud noise and frequent exposure to it is responsible for noise-induced hearing loss. Whatever the sound heard, however, is nothing but a perception of it by the one listening to it. What is noise to one, may be music to another. Then there is noise music.
Damage to the cochlea may only be one problem associated with people’s music habits. Since noise and music are differentiated at the perception level of the brain, how people may appreciate and tolerate noise and music may also be affected. Musical Ear Syndrome (MES), a term first coined in 2004 by Neil G. Bauman, Ph.D. refers to a condition in which those with hearing loss experience musical auditory hallucinations .
Hence, it is vital to protect your hearing. For those with hearing loss, it may need a hearing aid to cope with it. Make sure to get a hearing aid prescription before purchasing a hearing aid. For more details of our hearing test & assessment, and hearing aid services, please contact HK Hearing & Speech Centre.
Source:
HK Hearing & Speech Centre
Specialist of Hearing test & assessment,
and Hearing Aid Prescription
https://www.hkhearingspeech.com
Hearing loss, of which deafness is only one kind, is an impairment or disability involving the function of the ears. Like all other human conditions, it can be caused by factors internal or external to the person or a combination of both. In general, though, the cause of deafness is not known but at present there are reportedly about 400 different types of hereditary hearing loss known.
In the US, for example, while most babies are born with perfect hearing, it is estimated that about 2 to 3 in every 1,000 healthy babies are born with some form of deafness, making it one of the most common birth defects. While this may look genetic in origin, some of these may be caused by infections suffered by the mothers while pregnant. This number of hearing impaired babies may increase as soon as the baby is exposed to such external factors as noise in the environment. Other factors may come into play as the child grows like malnutrition or some infection to the inner ear.
Nadol (1993) reported that an estimated 4 percent of people under 45 years of age in the US and 29 percent of those 65 years or over have a handicapping loss of hearing, while a similar study in Great Britain showed approximately 25 percent of the population questioned had some hearing difficulty . This does not mean, however, that these people have genes for deafness. But it can mean they may have genes with predilection towards deafness when exposed to certain conditions. As of 2013, hearing loss affected about 1.1 billion people .
It is estimated that 50% to 60% of babies born with a hearing impairment have inherited the genes that lead to hearing loss but it is also reported that 25% or more of hearing loss in babies is due to “environmental” causes such as maternal infections during pregnancy and complications after birth . For example, there are some medicines that can cause hearing loss, but only in people who have certain mutations in their genes involved in hearing. One of these genes is one labelled GJB2. Mutations in this gene is now known to be the cause of the most common form of hereditary deafness. Such mutations are found to run in families.
Whether deafness is completely hereditary, however, could be determined after more studies on GJB2 and other genes affecting hearing.
If you think you need a hearing aid, make sure that you get a hearing aid prescription. For more details of our hearing test & assessment, and hearing aid services, please contact HK Hearing & Speech Centre.
Source:
HK Hearing & Speech Centre
Specialist of Hearing test & assessment,
and Hearing Aid Prescription
https://www.hkhearingspeech.com