We investigated whether depression, communication function, and cognitive function in adults with a hearing impairment were improved with the use of hearing aids. The study group comprised 27 patients with sensorineural hearing loss who were fitted with hearing aids. All patients were assessed using the GDS (geriatric depression Scale), QDS (Quantified Denver Scale of Communication Function), HDS-R (Hasegawa's Dementia Scale-1 Revised), and MMSE (Mini Mental State Examination) prior to the fitting of hearing aids. All patients were reassessed by these tests after 1 year, and 18 patients of these cases were also reassessed after 2 years. The MMSE score improved from before the start of hearing aid use for up to 2 years after hearing use. However, there was no change in any of the scores after only 1 year. The items of improvement in MMSE score were attention/concentration (calculation), verbal comprehension, constructional praxis, which were related to an individual's working memory. This suggests that the cognitive function improved due to an increase in the working memory in elderly individuals who use hearing aids.

Cartilage conduction hearing aids (CCHAs) are newly developed hearing devices that use the phenomenon wherein externally vibrated aural cartilage generates sound within the external ear canal, resulting in an amplified sound at the inner ear. We collected the clinical information of patients who visited our CCHA clinic of Kyushu University Hospital during its first two years of operation. We analyzed the patient profiles, hearing test results, and decision to purchase a CCHA. The percentage of patients who purchased a CCHA among those who tried it was higher in patients with aural atresia and chronic otitis media with persistent otorrhea than in those with other diseases. Patients who showed a better functional gain by the CCHA had a higher rate of purchasing it. However, in patients who were already wearing other types of hearing devices, the comparison of the aided threshold of their current device and the CCHA did not affect the purchase decision. These findings suggest that patients consider factors other than the hearing outcome, such as the comfort, when deciding whether or not to switch from their currently used hearing device to a CCHA.

In 2013, Fukuoka City started a hearing aid purchase subsidy program for children with mild to moderate hearing loss. In the past 6 years, there have been 83 users throughout the system, and we herein report the circumstances. We evaluated 37 users underwent a newborn hearing screening. There were 29 cases in which the newborn hearing screening resulted in a referral, and 80% of children had started using a hearing aid by 3 years old. Eight cases had a newborn hearing screening result of ‘pass’. However, it was suggested that even if an infant passed their newborn hearing screening, they needed to be closely monitored for the subsequent onset of hearing loss. Based on these changes to the social situation, the current circumstances and the future of childcare for hearing-impaired children in Fukuoka City should be considered further.

Self-advocacy is considered a developmental process for disabled person to express their own needs in an assertive way, and to obtain appropriate support from others in a social context. The adequate acquisition of self-advocacy is indispensable, especially for mainstreaming children with hearing impairment. The establishment of systematic educational programs for self-advocacy is therefore an urgent task for Japanese society; however, at present, information describing the process of developing self-advocacy is not available. To asses self-advocacy among students with hearing loss, the current study examined 36 hard of hearing students (cochlear-implant, n=13; hearing-aid, n=19; and bimodal hearing-device users, n=4) using "The Self-advocacy Checklist for Japanese Students (SCJS)". The SCJS score was found to increase according to their growth ; however, only 20% of students reached an "appropriate" level when they were in the upper grades. An understanding of the current status of self-advocacy among Japanese students with hearing impairment is indispensable, especially for planning proper intervention programs aimed at enhancing self-advocacy.

We herein report a case of hereditary angioedema (HAE). A 32-year-old woman was referred to our hospital because of a complaint of respiratory distress and was admitted because of swelling of the throat. Since she was aware of swelling of the pharynx and dyspnea from the first visit, she was admitted immediately on the same day, and emergency tracheotomy was planned. On close inspection, HAE was diagnosed. HAE is a rare disease that causes edema in various parts of the body and can be fatal when it triggers upper airway narrowing. If HAE can be diagnosed promptly, then effective treatment can be successfully administered. Otolaryngologists should therefore be aware of this entity.

We report a case of lateral medullary infarction that was not detected on the initial magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). A 49-year-old female with acute vertigo and vomiting presented to the emergency room. Although she complained of both vertigo and sensory disorder in the right arm and leg, abnormal findings were not noted on the initial MRI scan, which was examined 2 hours 45 minutes after symptom onset. Since dysbasia and paralysis of left soft palate and vocal cord were detected by otolaryngologist, a follow-up MRI performed 7 hours after symptom onset. This MRI showed lateral medullary infarction and she was admitted to a neurosurgery department for treatment. False-negative findings on MRI are sometimes observed in the case of brainstem infarction. Physicians should keep in mind the importance to neurological examinations and a second MRI examination, if needed, to rule out the diagnosis of brainstem infarction.