Cochlear implants have instigated a popular but controversial revolution in the treatment of deafness. This book discusses the physiological bases of using artificial devices to electrically stimulate the brain to interpret sounds. As the first successful device to restore neural function, the cochlear implant serves as a model for research in neuroscience and biomedical engineering. These and other auditory prostheses are discussed in the context of historical treatments, engineering, psychophysics and clinical issues as well as implications for speech, behavior, cognition and long-term...

Sounds that are actually produced by healthy ears allow researchers and clinicians to study hearing and cochlear function noninvasively in both animals and humans. This book presents the first serious review of the biological basis of these otoacoustic emissions. Active processes, such as those in hair cells that produce emissions, represent a burgeoning and important area of sensory research. By providing a basis for understanding how and why otoacoustic emissions testing works through a basic understanding of general hearing processes, this volume will also interest clinicians,...

Vertebrate Hair Cells provides a current overview of the mechanosensory receptor cells of the vertebrate inner ear. Each chapter is written by experimentalists active in exploring a particular set of questions in an aspect of hair cell function, including development, transduction, and synaptic transmission. Experimental approaches described include molecular, genetic, ultrastructural, biophysical and computational. Thus, each chapter covers not just what we know, but how we have learned it and the implications for future work. The experimental focus differentiates this book from general...

Exposure to loud noise continues to be the largest cause of hearing loss in the adult population. The problem of NIHL impacts a number of disciplines. US standards for permissible noise exposure were originally published in 1968 and remain largely unchanged today. Indeed, permissible noise exposure for US personnel is significantly greater than that allowed in numerous other countries, including for example, Canada, China, Brazil, Mexico, and the European Union. However, there have been a number of discoveries and advances that have increased our understanding of the mechanisms of NIHL....