Sclerosteosis is a rare genetic bone dysplasia disorder characterised by generalised craniotubular bone modelling. Alongside many clinical appearances marked in sclerosteosis, the auditory system is considerably compromised on several levels during the disease progression. Extensive otolaryngological research on the history of sclerosteosis, the clinical presentation of sclerosteosis, radiographic studies and the gene causing the condition had been documented. No studies had been found describing the audiological profiles, auditory functioning and abnormalities for subjects with sclerosteosis. Thus the object of this study aimed to describe the auditory profile of subjects with sclerosteosis. A cross-sectional descriptive research design and quantitative research approach was followed to investigate the auditory characteristics of subjects with sclerosteosis. Subjects were selected from a database of patients with confirmed diagnoses of sclerosteosis. Ten subjects responded and provided written informed consent. Test procedures included otoscopy, tympanometry, acoustic reflexes, diagnostic pure-tone airand bone-conduction audiometry, speech audiometry, distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAE), auditory brainstem responses (ABR) and computed tomographic (CT) scans. The subjects were assessed with a comprehensive audiological test-battery within a single test session lasting approximately two hours. A CT scan was conducted on a separate occasion shortly after the audiological data were obtained. Normal type A tympanograms were obtained in 50% (n=10/20) of ears. All subjects presented with mixed hearing losses varying from moderate (5%; n=1), severe (55%; n=11) and profound (40%; n=8) degrees across ears. Hearing loss configurations ranged from rising (15%), sloping (35%) and air-conduction thresholds peaking at 2000 Hz (50%). Air bone gaps (ABG) were larger in older subjects, although not statistically significant (p>.05). The CT scans indicated anatomical abnormalities of the external auditory canal, tympanic membrane, middle ear space, ossicles, oval window, round window and the internal auditory canal. The progressive abnormal bone formation in sclerosteosis involved the middle ear, the round and oval windows of the cochlea and internal auditory canal. The progressive abnormal bony overgrowth, which is the hallmark of sclerosteosis, led to functional impairment at various levels in the auditory system. The current findings provided a comprehensive auditory profile for sclerosteosis. Results might be utilised alongside future research findings to direct criteria and audiological indications for surgical and audiological intervention. / Dissertation (MCommunication Pathology)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / gm2014 / Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology / Unrestricted

Studies have indicated that the loss of a child to violence is a traumatic experience that can leave mothers in an unmitigated state of suffering and trepidation. Available research suggests that Black mothers who suffer disproportionately from violent loss, their experience of loss while individualized, is grounded in social contexts. The following phenomenological study explores the lived experiences of three Black mothers who have lost a child to homicide. This study explores the social phenomenon associated with losing a “Black” child to homicide and the grieving and bereavement experience of the surviving mother. Analysis revealed that the themes of race, gender and class are defining facets that intensify and compound the conditions of grief for Black mothers. This study concludes with recommendations in hopes of helping others begin to understand all that is lost and what must be understood when a Black Mother losses her child to homicide.

Magister Artium (Social Work) - MA(SW) / Overwhelming evidence suggests that 90% of children with a hearing loss are born to hearing parents. Research indicates that often these hearing parents are ill-informed about the cause and type of hearing loss their child has, leading the hearing parents to feelings of grief and disempowerment. Many hearing parents at the time of the diagnosis experience emotional turmoil as the diagnosis is often unexpected, resulting in a plethora of questions asked. The research approach for the study was qualitative in nature as it set out to explore and describe the experiences of hearing parents of their child’s hearing loss. A phenomenological strategy of design was employed to capture the lived experience from the hearing parents. Data was collected by means of unstructured individual in-depth interviews with 11 hearing parents. Volunteer and snowball sampling were implemented so as to access hearing parents whose children had been diagnosed with hearing loss. Data was analysed according to Creswell (2007) and Klenke (2008) and the trustworthiness of the qualitative study was evaluated against the criteria that Guba described in Krefting (1991). Ethical considerations, such as voluntary participation, informed consent, confidentiality, anonymity, no harm done and debriefing, were adhered to. After the conclusion of the research analysis, the findings of the research were discussed and recommendations were made. The findings of the recommendations spoke to the better understanding of the emotions and challenges of hearing parents as well as putting forward suggestions for supportive coping mechanisms to be put in place to support hearing parents whose children have been diagnosed with a hearing loss.

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This article summarizes the significant contributions of Fred H. Bess to the early detection of hearing loss in infants and children. Based on public health and educational policy, Bess challenged audiologists to view hearing screening as a responsibility that brought with it the need to develop screening tools that are effective in identifying hearing loss - whether for use with infants, preschoolers, or school-age children - and that adhere to important screening principles. A review of his influence on pertinent guidelines, position statements, and recommendations highlights his belief that early identification of hearing loss is critical if children are to overcome the significant obstacles presented by even mild and unilateral hearing losses. This section is followed by a review of seminal papers that stimulated research in universal newborn hearing screening programs and the detection of unilateral and minimal hearing loss. We conclude with a review of selected studies that build on Bess's earlier work and strive to drive our field forward to practices that are both evidence-based and effective in detecting hearing loss in children.

Research has shown that age-related hearing loss may have profound implications on all aspects of an individual's life, including cognitive abilities. The relationship between hearing loss and cognition has led to research which indicates an association between objective hearing loss and reduced driving performance in older adults. However, little research exists on the relationship between self-perceived hearing loss and driving confidence, particularly in the South African context. The current study aimed to identify possible associations between driving confidence and hearing loss, age, sex and driving safety among older adults. Data analysis indicated a significant increase in driving confidence after one month of first-time hearing aid use. An insignificant or weak relationship was found between self-perceived hearing loss and level of driving confidence. Age, sex and a combination of both were significantly associated with level of driving confidence. No association was found between pure-tone average and level of driving confidence or between pure-tone average and driving safety. Further research in this area could assist in advising legislation relating to licensing and road safety campaigns targeted at older adults, as well as expanding audiologists' duty of care to include counselling on the potential positive effects of hearing aid use on driving confidence.

Many existing dams in the United States were built without hydroelectric generating accessories and are now being considered for hydroelectric installations. A bifurcation is regularly used as the method for diverting the water to the new generators. With a bifurcation installed as part of the new piping system, cavitation could become a problem. Although widely used, there are no published data on cavitation characteristics or head loss coefficients for these bifurcations. Dimensional analysis has not been adequate for experimentally quantifying the cavitation potential and full scale testing is prohibitive for many large geometries. Therefore this study utilized Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) in conjunction with a physical model to predict conditions that would cause the onset of cavitation. Head loss coefficients were also calculated from the CFD simulations and physical model. Based on these results, the authors have produced recommended operating conditions that will allow bifurcations to operate within safe limits of cavitation. This study was not exhaustive but presents data that has previously been unavailable and will assist designers and operators to better understand the performance of such bifurcations.

Obesity is a chronic and growing disease defined by weighing 20% or more than the ideal, or having a body mass index (BMI) of 30 kg/m2 or more. While natural weight loss is available, many patients are choosing weight loss surgery (i.e., bariatric surgery) as an alternative to lose weight and reduce their risks for comorbidities such as diabetes, heart disease, and sleep apnea. Tools and resources for post-surgical support in the bariatric surgery community have been limited and, in the past, most tools and resources for weight loss have focused on non-surgical weight loss communities; as such, analysis methods for measuring success in this population have not been clearly developed and tested. This research proposes and evaluates analysis methods that may be used in such studies. These analysis methods are evaluated using data from the Weight and Exercise Lifestyle Support study at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, MA. In this study, a group of participants (n = 6) approved for bariatric surgery were followed by the research team starting roughly one month before surgery through three months after surgery. Participants received pedometers and weight scales, and access to an online patient portal where they could review their physical activity levels, and receive support from others in the study and an exercise consultant. Data collected included pre- and post-study dietary and exercise self-efficacy levels, self-reported and objective physical activity measures, self-reported dietary adherence, device usage, and usability and satisfaction with the program. This research evaluates whether the proposed measures can help determine the presence and nature of the relationships between the aforementioned variables. If these measures prove to be useful, they can be used in future interventions that use technology to support post-surgical weight loss communities.

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