Welcome to the Department of Audiology at the VCU Medical Center. Think only older people have hearing loss? In fact, more than half of all people with hearing difficulties are under the age of 65. 1 to 4 of every 1000 babies born in the U.S. has some form of hearing loss. Hearing is critical to speech and language development, communication, learning, and social development. The VCU Audiology department provides comprehensive hearing services to patients of all ages, including evaluation, hearing aid dispensing and cochlear implant services. Please follow the links at left to explore the services we offer.
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Latest News
This has been a very exciting time for the VCU Cochlear Implant Program, with many new services and programs now being enacted, and exciting plans for the future. We've had a great last 12 months and have been growing bigger every month. Last year we implanted nearly 70 patients, and credit the highly effective Virginia Early Hearing Detection and Identification (EHDI) Program in helping to facilitate and shorten the entire process from identification to treatment of children with hearing loss.
If you've visited the MCV campus recently, you know that in July the Audiology Department underwent a physical renovation to make our offices more modern, comfortable, and efficient. We also have some new technology, including a state-of-the art Video VRA (Visual Reinforcement Audiometry) system, which facilitates pediatric testing by providing animated cartoon reinforcement during hearing testing.
In the spring we successfully petitioned the Commonwealth of Virginia to allow for remote programming of cochlear implants. This is among the first approvals for CI telehealth in the nation, and the first in Virginia! By using internet video conferencing, this amazing development allows implant programming while the audiologist and patient are in different locations! This will allow us to do mapping at sites other than our downtown clinic, such as schools, other clinical sites, etc. The Richmond school district has agreed to be our first remote school site, and we will soon determine the logistics of programming at other locations.
Also, we are very excited about the merger of the VCU Health System with the Children's Hospital of Richmond. This has provided a wonderful opportunity to integrate and amplify pediatric services for all children with communication disorders. Already our team provides a range of hearing health services for infants and children. The merger will allow for easier partnering with local early intervention agencies as well as school districts and rehabilitation services for children who are transitioning from home to school or school to work settings.
In April, the VCU Hospital Auxiliary provided a $20,000 grant to purchase loaner hearing aids for our patients. The aids will be used with children who are potential cochlear implant candidates and need a hearing aid trial before proceeding with surgery. This relieves parents of the burden of having to purchase hearing aids for short-term use. Loaners will also help children who urgently need to borrow hearing aids due to malfunction or loss of their own aids. This way they get the full benefit of hearing in school, and don't miss important academic and social information from teachers and peers.
Our audiologists, surgeons, pediatricians, therapists, and coordinators continue to stay current with new technologies and new trends in cochlear implantation. Certainly, amongst the most popular topics of discussion we have with patients is over bilateral implantation, either simultaneously or sequentially. Studies have shown that listeners' ability to understand speech in background noise and to localize sound can often be improved through the addition of a second cochlear implant. In background noise, the brain needs information from all directions to determine the importance of a sound. Additional studies have shown that with bilateral implantation, listeners have an increased ability to identify the direction of the sound and to understand speech in noise. Research and clinical observation show that these results are especially good in children due to the plasticity of the developing auditory system. Thankfully, most insurance companies are increasingly aware that two ears are better than one!
We greatly appreciate the continued support of our patients, their families, and our colleagues in the community. We have come a long way since 1984 when MCV served as one of 24 original FDA trial sites of the first multichannel cochlear implant. Yes, we've come a long way, but we remain most excited about what lies on the road ahead. Together, with the shared commitment to provide the absolute highest levels of care to children with severe to profound hearing loss, we will remain one of the premier programs in the country.
Pump up the Volume -
A Centreville couple receives cochlear implants at the VCU Medical Center
Something magical happened the morning after Joe Duarte’s second cochlear implant was activated. As Joe drove back to the Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center’s Cochlear Implant Center for a follow-up appointment, he decided to check out the quality of his new stereophonic listening ability. >> READ MORE or Click Here to read the Times article.