Field of Dreams

Spring is in the air! With the arrival of spring comes our American past time known as baseball. With Major League Baseball just beginning their season earlier this month, I thought it's a great time to talk about baseball players who were hearing impaired. There were only a handful of player who were hearing impaired that ever made it to the pinnacle of baseball which is the Major League. According to Wikipedia, the last known player to play in the majors was Curtis Pride who played from 1993 to 2006. 

Did you know that the first known hearing impaired baseball player who played in the major league was over a hundred years ago? 

Edward "Dummy" Dundon

Edward "Dummy" Dundon was credited as the first professional baseball player who was deaf. He was a pitcher who played for the Columbus Colts from 1883 to 1884. At the time, the Columbus Colts were known as a major league level team. Ed Dundon was reported by the Sporting News in a 1996 article to have used hand signals to call balls and strikes. Even though, Ed Dundon was credited for being the first hearing impaired player, he is largely forgotten and overshadowed by the next player who played in the major leagues.

William "Dummy" Hoy

William "Dummy" Hoy is arguably the most famous and the most accomplished major league player who was  hearing impaired.  According to Wikipedia, William "Dummy" Hoy was born in Houcktown, Ohio, He became deaf at the age of three after suffering from meningitis. He went on to graduate from the Ohio State School for the Deaf in Columbus, Ohio as class valedictorian. In 1888, with the Washington Nationals of the American Association, Hoy became only the third deaf player in the major leagues, after pitcher Ed Dundon and pitcher Tom Lynch who was a pitcher for the Chicago White Stockings in 1884. Hoy went on to play for several teams before ending his major league career with the Cincinnati Reds in 1902. Hoy retired with a .287 batting average, 2044 hits, 1426 runs, 726 runs batted in, 248 doubles, 121 triples and 40 home runs. He had 487 stolen bases from 1888 through 1897 according to Wikipedia. In 1951 he was the first deaf athlete to be elected for membership in the American Athletic Association of the Deaf Hall of Fame. William "Dummy" Hoy lived to he was 99 years old and was regarded as role model and hero in the American deaf community in the early 20th century.

Even though the number of  hearing impaired players who ever made it to the major leagues were only a handful but they all overcame great odds to achieve their lifelong dreams of playing professional baseball. Some of the men were given the moniker "Dummy" but these men were never dumb at all.  So, being hearing impaired should not stop you from achieving your field of dreams. 

What are your field of dreams?

Different Types of Hearing Loss

The Free Dictionary defines hearing loss as any degree of impairment of the ability to apprehend sound. According to American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) when describing hearing loss, there are three categories in determine hearing loss: Type of Hearing Loss, Degree of Hearing Loss and Configuration of Hearing Loss. Hearing loss can have a devastating effect on the quality of life in both adults and children. Hearing loss in children can interfere with learning and development. Untreated hearing loss can have a lasting impact on employment, education and overall well-being.  Today, I want to touch on the different types of hearing loss. I want to give you a brief overall view. If you want more in depth explanations, I am providing some links at the end of the post for reference.

When determining hearing loss we should understand the different types of hearing loss.  According to ASHA, there are generally three types of hearing loss: conductive, sensorineural and mixed hearing loss.

Conductive Hearing Loss occurs when sound is not conducted effectively through the outer ear to the eardrum and the ossicles (tiny bones) of the middle ear. The effect of conductive hearing loss is the reduction of sound level or the absence of hearing faint sounds. This type of loss can be treated medically or surgically.  Some of the causes of Conductive Hearing Loss include perforated ear drums, ear infections, impacted earwax, and fluid buildup in the ears due to illness.

Sensorineural Hearing Loss occurs when there is damage to the inner ear or the nerve pathways leading from the inner ear to the brain.  Unfortunately, the damage cannot be medically or surgically repaired in most cases. The damage is permanent. The effect of this loss reduces one’s ability to hear faint sounds and if the speech is loud enough to hear, the speech or sound may be muffed or unclear. Some of causes of sensorineural hear loss include illness, damage from loud noise, head trauma and malformation of the inner ear.

Mixed Hearing Loss occurs when there is a combination of both conductive and sensorinerual hearing loss. There would be damage both to the outer or middle and the inner ear. The effect of this loss includes reduction of sound level and/or absence of hearing faint sounds.

Hopefully, I was able to provide you with a high level overview of the different types of hearing loss. So what type of hearing loss do you have? I would love your feedback on this post or any other posts. For more information you can link to the following:

American Speech-Language-Hearing Association

Hearing Loss Association of America

Hearing Health Foundation

WebMD

Common Terminology Associated with Hearing Loss

Whether you are new to hearing loss or have been living with hearing loss for years, there is so much jargon out on the internet that sometimes we lose track of what they mean.  Although, the list is not all-inclusive it should give a you a good base to understanding terminology that you may come across while researching information, reading my blog or talking to your professional hearing specialist.

American Speech Language Hearing Association (ASHA) - ASHA is the national professional, scientific, and credentialing association for more than 166,000 members and affiliates who are audiologists, speech-language pathologists, speech, language, and hearing scientists, audiology and speech-language pathology support personnel, and students

Amplifier - an electronic component or device that increases the loudness of sound.

Analog Hearing Aid - a basic hearing aid that amplifies sound based on your audiogram.

Articulation Index (AI) - a tool used in audiology to predict the amount of speech that is audible to a patient with a specific hearing loss

Asymmetrical Hearing Loss – Asymmetrical means degree the Articulation Index (AI) is a tool used to predict the amount of speech that is audible to a patient with a specific hearing loss and configuration of hearing loss are different in each ear.

Audiology - the branch of science that studies hearing, balance, and related disorders.

Audiologist – a health-care professional specializing in identifying, diagnosing, treating and monitoring disorders of the auditory and ]] portions of the ear. Audiologists are trained to diagnose, manage and/or treat hearing or balance problems.

Audiogram – the result of a hearing test and it shows you the extent of any hearing loss in either ear.

Audiometer – a machine used for evaluating hearing loss which is standard equipment at audiology centers. They usually consist of an embedded hardware unit connected to a pair of headphones and a test subject feedback button, sometimes controlled by a standard PC.

Behind the Ear Hearing Aid (BTE) – hearing aid in which the components are placed behind the ear and the sound is delivered to the ear through a tube connect to an ear mold.

Bilateral Hearing Loss – hearing loss is presented in both ears

Cerumen – medical terminology for ear wax.

Completely In Canal Hearing Aid (CIC) – hearing aid in which all or nearly all of the aid is placed inside the ear canal.

Cochlea – spiral-shaped cavity of the inner ear that resembles a snail shell and contains nerve endings essential for hearing.

Cochlear Implant – surgically implanted electronic hearing device that provides a sense of sound to a person who is profoundly deaf or severely hard of hearing.

Conductive Hearing Loss – hearing loss due to damage to the conductive portion of the auditory system such as the eardrum or the bones in the middle ear

Decibel (dB) – measurement of the loudness of a sound

Digital Hearing Aid – hearing aid with a digital processor that converts analog sound to digital, and then back to analog.

Ear Canal – channel on the side of the head that the pinna directs sound down to the eardrum.

Ear Drum – the thin membrane that separates the outer ear from the middle ear; sound vibrates the membrane which transfers the energy to the bones of the middle ear.

Feedback – the whistling sound that occurs when sound from a speaker loops back to the microphone.

Frequency Band – in hearing aids refers to the divisions of frequencies that can be adjusted for volume independently from other frequency bands.

Hertz (Hz) – measurement of the speed of a sound wave, one cycle per second = 1Hz

Impression – silicon cast of the shape of the ear and canal used to make custom hearing aids and ear molds.

In The Canal Hearing Aid (ITC) – hearing aid that resides primarily in the ear canal, but also extends into the bowl of the ear

In The Ear Hearing Aid (ITE) - hearing aid that fills the bowl area of the ear

Sensorineural Hearing Loss – type of hearing loss in which the root cause lies in the inner ear, or central processing centers of the brain

Speech Discrimination - refers to the ability to understand speech when amplified to a comfortable level

Symmetrical Hearing Loss – refers to the same or similar degree and configuration of hearing loss in each ear

Telecoil – device in a hearing aid that can connect with the magnetic coils of a telephone and transfer the sound through the hearing aid without feedback

Unilateral Hearing Loss – hearing loss is presented in one ear while the normal hearing is presented in the other ear

Are You Hiding a Hearing Loss?

Hearing loss is rarely sudden or total, in most instances the hearing loss is gradual over time. In fact, you may not notice the gradual loss but more often your family and friends will notice the hearing loss first before you may notice the loss yourself.

Here  are 10 questions from Hearing Health Foundation to help you determine if you should have a professional hearing evaluation done by a hearing healthcare professional. Keep in mind, the questions are to assist you determine if you should seek a hearing evaluation. Only your Doctor or a  Hearing Healthcare professional can clearly diagnosis your hearing loss and determine the necessary treatment.

1. Do you have trouble hearing on the telephone?
2. Do you have a problem following the conversation when two or more people are talking at the same time?
3. Do people complain that you have the TV volume too high?
4. Do you have to strain to understand a conversation?
5. Do you have trouble hearing in a noisy environment?
6. Do you find yourself asking others to repeat themselves?
7. Do many people you talk to seems not to speak clearly or mumble?
8. Do you misunderstand what people are saying and respond inappropriately?
9. Do you have trouble understanding speech of women or children?
10. Do people get annoyed because you misunderstood what they said?

If you answered "YES" to three or more questions, you should consider seeking a Hearing Healthcare professional to schedule a .professional hearing evaluation to determine if you may have a hearing loss.