There are deaf/hh people I know who grew up with SEE with their parents learning the English visual language. I'd say those deaf kids were lucky to have parents willing to sign as part of the visual communication effort than to rely on audition alone (i.e. speaking/listening). The oral and aural route may be a difficult route to take even though many kids have fared well while others didn't and that signing would've been helpful. It also could have easily been no signing (ie. SEE, ASL, PSE, manual alphabet, LOVE, etc) whatsoever with no visual form of communication (including CUED speech) and just rely on their hearing aids only and do the whole oral/aural gambit instead. But luckily for them a visual language (e.g. SEE) was used to communicate and thus a foundation was indeed built. It may or may not have been a solid foundation but at least a foundation nonetheless.
Many SEE kids who are now adults show their gratefulness for their parents' contribution on establishing a visual communication effort with them. It could've been a lot worse. It could've been no signing at all. Although I noticed some adults who grew up with SEE developed a certain disdain towards their own upbringing by their parents on the SEE usage simply because their parents didn't use ASL in the first place. How droll. How about at least show some kind of gratitude instead of being a snotty person about the whole affair and stop with this misguided anger towards parents for providing SEE instead of ASL? Signing in SEE became a familiar affair for those growing up with English visual language and because of that it helped those make the transition over from SEE to PSE or to ASL in a much more familiar environment as opposed to deaf/hh people who have never signed in SEE, PSE or ASL at all.
Be thankful you were exposed very early to SEE which is visual form of the English language rather than having no visual language at all.
Just ...... stop whining about SEE.
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Open Communication and Open Society
Caption This!
There's no big mystery about this when it comes to believing that an open communication regardless of the method used is key to help people with hearing loss feel comfortable and on equitable grounds with the rest of their hearing peers. There are millions of people who feel the same way as I do. There are a variety of niche areas of technologies and services today that provide the advantage to help people with their communication needs and access. Just because deaf and hard of hearing people who know sign language does not mean they will be able to understand completely what was said in an ASL performance any more than deaf and hard of hearing people with their hearing aids and cochlear implants will understand completely what was said in a spoken (speech) theater performance or movie. I am talking about the whole range of population of people with hearing loss in the United States numbering around 36 million people versus a certain but limited number of those who are deaf/hh and fluent in ASL (around 600,000).
Just because deaf and hard of people who are fluent or know sign language does not mean they prefer always a signed performance but also like to attend performances by hearing people such as music (rock, country, etc) band on stage with their lyrics, stage performances and just your everyday movie theater while providing captions. Both communication access using open captioning and sign language interpreters offer the best of both worlds.
Each year Gallaudet University host this Jump Start program (formerly known as New Signers Program) to help incoming first year and transfer students improve their sign language skills. For them it is easier to improve on their expressive signing than receptive signing. Just because they attended the Jump Start program does not make them experts on ASL or will be able to understand everything that's being signed on stage for example the recent Hamlet performances in April. Many students are hard of hearing and can hear and understand a person speaking with his/her voice. Each person's receptive skills and understanding of the spoken word varies. Even after the first and second year at Gallaudet University does not mean students receptive skills will guarantee 100% understanding the signing of ASL such as ASL performances on stage. In fact, by not providing open captioning to the audience who fall between understanding some ASL to understanding some of the spoken word at a Hamlet play is violating ADA accommodation and Section 504 law. Students should be encouraged to file grievances for this transgression at Gallaudet University.
* American Sign Language Interpreter
* Signed English Interpreter (SEE-Signing Exact English or PSE-Pidgin Sign English)
* FM Systems and Conference Microphones
* Voice interpreter
* CART
* Remote Captioning
* Cued Speech Transiliterator
* I-Communicator
* Typewell/C-Print
* Professional or Volunteer Notetakers
Even though Gallaudet University obviously supports ASL many are calling for the exclusive use of ASL for all or "ASL at all times." That'd be if only the educational institution in question was a private educational institution that receives no federal funding then it wouldn't fall under the rules of Section 504. But since Gallaudet University receives annual federal funding for as long as it has been opened it must abide by Section 504 laws. Section 504 gives the power over to students who may request communication accessibility other than ASL or voice.
Gallaudet University once again violates ADA law and Section 504 for not providing an alternative communication access for their signed ASL performances for students and people who still lack the necessary receptive skills to understand fully the signed ASL performances. Gallaudet University continues to be the living and breathing conundrum for deaf/hh students new to the world of sign language and they are unable to even enjoy and understand signed performances. Gallaudet University was willing to provide voiced support of their recent signed Hamlet performances but was unwilling to provide open captioning to those who are weak in signing and understanding the spoken words. But the irony is that Gallaudet University put up a Hamlet play when a cruel twist of fate usually happens in a Shakespeare play and this cruel twist of fate is the continued ignorance of deaf/hh students who are new or are in the middle of such worlds.
"This above all: to thine own self be true,
And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man."
- William Shakespeare, Hamlet, 1.3
There's no big mystery about this when it comes to believing that an open communication regardless of the method used is key to help people with hearing loss feel comfortable and on equitable grounds with the rest of their hearing peers. There are millions of people who feel the same way as I do. There are a variety of niche areas of technologies and services today that provide the advantage to help people with their communication needs and access. Just because deaf and hard of hearing people who know sign language does not mean they will be able to understand completely what was said in an ASL performance any more than deaf and hard of hearing people with their hearing aids and cochlear implants will understand completely what was said in a spoken (speech) theater performance or movie. I am talking about the whole range of population of people with hearing loss in the United States numbering around 36 million people versus a certain but limited number of those who are deaf/hh and fluent in ASL (around 600,000).
Just because deaf and hard of people who are fluent or know sign language does not mean they prefer always a signed performance but also like to attend performances by hearing people such as music (rock, country, etc) band on stage with their lyrics, stage performances and just your everyday movie theater while providing captions. Both communication access using open captioning and sign language interpreters offer the best of both worlds.
Q.What about services for the deaf or those who are hearing disabled? What exactly is open captioning?
A.Open captioning uses a portable LED screen set up orchestra right or left, by the proscenium. It’s rarely on stage because we don’t want to disturb the artistic look of the show. It faces a particular side of the orchestra where we have made tickets available to people with hearing disabilities.
We also offer sign language interpretation, but it is of no help whatsoever to people who are not deaf. Where our department is growing is in providing open captioning because there’s such a demand for it.
Far too many people who don’t hear well are not going to admit it. The benefit of open captioning is that it’s passive assistance. It’s there and you can refer to it or not. You don’t have to identify yourself as having hearing loss. That’s very appealing.
Open captioning should be available to all regardless of the situation. You just never know who in the audience will need one. The same goes for Gallaudet University theater shows such as their recent Hamlet performance that was done in ASL and that all of their performances were voiced under the direction of Dr. Lindsey Snyder. But no open captioning for those who are new or weak on sign language and those who can hear Snyder's voice but would need assist with captioning. An ironic twist and a cruel but blatant discrimination against deaf/hh students and people who are relatively new or weak on sign language. A sign that Gallaudet University continues to be a closed society when it comes to having an open communication policy. One can still be in favor of sign language in an open society that advocates open communication but the converse cannot be true of those who are unwittingly in a closed society.People with hearing loss want to make use of any hearing they have. They will use assisted listening devices in conjunction with the open captioning so they can understand some or most of what is being said.
Each year Gallaudet University host this Jump Start program (formerly known as New Signers Program) to help incoming first year and transfer students improve their sign language skills. For them it is easier to improve on their expressive signing than receptive signing. Just because they attended the Jump Start program does not make them experts on ASL or will be able to understand everything that's being signed on stage for example the recent Hamlet performances in April. Many students are hard of hearing and can hear and understand a person speaking with his/her voice. Each person's receptive skills and understanding of the spoken word varies. Even after the first and second year at Gallaudet University does not mean students receptive skills will guarantee 100% understanding the signing of ASL such as ASL performances on stage. In fact, by not providing open captioning to the audience who fall between understanding some ASL to understanding some of the spoken word at a Hamlet play is violating ADA accommodation and Section 504 law. Students should be encouraged to file grievances for this transgression at Gallaudet University.
According to Section 504, and since Gallaudet University is a recipient of federal financial assistance, a post secondary institution has an obligation under to ensure accessibility to students with disabilities, including those with hearing loss and the need for communication accessibility.II. Scope of Grievance
Any University student who believes that he or she has been subjected to discrimination on the basis of disability or has been denied access or accommodations required by law shall have the right to invoke this Grievance Procedure. In general, this Grievance Procedure is designed to address the following types of concerns:
- Disagreements or denials regarding requested services, accommodations, or modifications to University practices or requirements;
- Alleged inaccessibility of a University program or activity;
- Alleged harassment or discrimination on the basis of a disability; and
- Any other alleged violations of the ADA and/or Section 504.
An important responsibility of the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is to eliminate discrimination on the basis of disability against students with disabilities. OCR receives numerous complaints and inquiries in the area of elementary and secondary education involving Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, 29 U.S.C. § 794 (Section 504). Most of these concern identification of students who are protected by Section 504 and the means to obtain an appropriate education for such students.
Section 504 is a federal law designed to protect the rights of individuals with disabilities in programs and activities that receive Federal financial assistance from the U.S. Department of Education (ED). Section 504 provides: "No otherwise qualified individual with a disability in the United States . . . shall, solely by reason of her or his disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance . . . ."
OCR enforces Section 504 in programs and activities that receive Federal financial assistance from ED. Recipients of this Federal financial assistance include public school districts, institutions of higher education, and other state and local education agencies. The regulations implementing Section 504 in the context of educational institutions appear at 34 C.F.R. Part 104.Services students should be able to request at Gallaudet University:
* American Sign Language Interpreter
* Signed English Interpreter (SEE-Signing Exact English or PSE-Pidgin Sign English)
* FM Systems and Conference Microphones
* Voice interpreter
* CART
* Remote Captioning
* Cued Speech Transiliterator
* I-Communicator
* Typewell/C-Print
* Professional or Volunteer Notetakers
Even though Gallaudet University obviously supports ASL many are calling for the exclusive use of ASL for all or "ASL at all times." That'd be if only the educational institution in question was a private educational institution that receives no federal funding then it wouldn't fall under the rules of Section 504. But since Gallaudet University receives annual federal funding for as long as it has been opened it must abide by Section 504 laws. Section 504 gives the power over to students who may request communication accessibility other than ASL or voice.
Gallaudet University once again violates ADA law and Section 504 for not providing an alternative communication access for their signed ASL performances for students and people who still lack the necessary receptive skills to understand fully the signed ASL performances. Gallaudet University continues to be the living and breathing conundrum for deaf/hh students new to the world of sign language and they are unable to even enjoy and understand signed performances. Gallaudet University was willing to provide voiced support of their recent signed Hamlet performances but was unwilling to provide open captioning to those who are weak in signing and understanding the spoken words. But the irony is that Gallaudet University put up a Hamlet play when a cruel twist of fate usually happens in a Shakespeare play and this cruel twist of fate is the continued ignorance of deaf/hh students who are new or are in the middle of such worlds.
"This above all: to thine own self be true,
And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man."
- William Shakespeare, Hamlet, 1.3
Sunday, June 24, 2012
The graduating class: You're not special
To those deaf and hard of hearing students who have graduated from high school or college, I have something to say to you in the hope that you'll be inspired to rethink of what the world awaits you once you get your diploma or degree.
All of your life growing up you have been coddled and pampered upon. You have been fawned and doted upon by your parents and grandparents. Your Mommy or Daddy, or both, have held you, hugged you, kissed you, fed you breakfast, lunch and dinner, wiped your bottom, trained you, taught you, listened to your complaints, your rants, your rage, your sadness and joys. You've had people who encouraged you, sympathized you, consoled you and encouraged you again umpteen times.
And over the years you had your sports games, your theatrical plays, musical recitals, and the many science fairs. Or you became class president, secretary or treasury and delved into school politics or became the school newspaper editor or reporter. Maybe you were well liked by friends and acquaintances where they would smile at you the moment you step into a classroom or whenever you approach them at a cafeteria table. Or they would take delight with your constant tweets or blogs thinking you're cleaver or funny.
Having said those things just don't get the idea that you're special because you're not. You're not the center of it all. The Earth is not the center of our solar system. Our solar system is not the center of its galaxy. Our galaxy is not the center of our universe. You're one of the many thousands of deaf and hard of hearing people who have graduated at a deaf-run school, a mainstreamed one or a regular school. Some graduated as valedictorians or class presidents, often with honors of some sort with glittering trophies and shiny medals and the many accolades that came with it. Each of you at graduation day all dressed alike. Same diploma or same degree that everybody expect to have in their hands with the only difference being it has your name on it.
Instead of thinking you're special, which is a dangerous thing to do, look for challenges in life. Embrace them. Think of it as if you're on a quest to climb one of the highest mountains because it's there. It beckons you and smirks at you saying, "Try and climb me! I bet you can't!" You climb because it is there. You see it as a challenge. You climb so you can see the world below you and not about whether the world can see you because you're an insignificant speck on that mountain top. No one sees but yourself. You're not special.
There are 6.8 billion people on this planet. Once you understand that then that's when you may finally understand that you're not that special. You are preparing and bracing yourself on what life will ultimately give you. But to be sure, please do whatever you do for no other reason than you love it and believe in its importance. And in the process change our culture so that it rewards genuine passion, genuine hard work and genuine achievement instead of accolades as an appeasement.
Happy belated graduation!
All of your life growing up you have been coddled and pampered upon. You have been fawned and doted upon by your parents and grandparents. Your Mommy or Daddy, or both, have held you, hugged you, kissed you, fed you breakfast, lunch and dinner, wiped your bottom, trained you, taught you, listened to your complaints, your rants, your rage, your sadness and joys. You've had people who encouraged you, sympathized you, consoled you and encouraged you again umpteen times.
And over the years you had your sports games, your theatrical plays, musical recitals, and the many science fairs. Or you became class president, secretary or treasury and delved into school politics or became the school newspaper editor or reporter. Maybe you were well liked by friends and acquaintances where they would smile at you the moment you step into a classroom or whenever you approach them at a cafeteria table. Or they would take delight with your constant tweets or blogs thinking you're cleaver or funny.
Having said those things just don't get the idea that you're special because you're not. You're not the center of it all. The Earth is not the center of our solar system. Our solar system is not the center of its galaxy. Our galaxy is not the center of our universe. You're one of the many thousands of deaf and hard of hearing people who have graduated at a deaf-run school, a mainstreamed one or a regular school. Some graduated as valedictorians or class presidents, often with honors of some sort with glittering trophies and shiny medals and the many accolades that came with it. Each of you at graduation day all dressed alike. Same diploma or same degree that everybody expect to have in their hands with the only difference being it has your name on it.
Instead of thinking you're special, which is a dangerous thing to do, look for challenges in life. Embrace them. Think of it as if you're on a quest to climb one of the highest mountains because it's there. It beckons you and smirks at you saying, "Try and climb me! I bet you can't!" You climb because it is there. You see it as a challenge. You climb so you can see the world below you and not about whether the world can see you because you're an insignificant speck on that mountain top. No one sees but yourself. You're not special.
There are 6.8 billion people on this planet. Once you understand that then that's when you may finally understand that you're not that special. You are preparing and bracing yourself on what life will ultimately give you. But to be sure, please do whatever you do for no other reason than you love it and believe in its importance. And in the process change our culture so that it rewards genuine passion, genuine hard work and genuine achievement instead of accolades as an appeasement.
Happy belated graduation!
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Posting rules....and not just for deaf people only.
I've added a painting of Uncle Sam seen on the upper left side of my blog where it is linked to my 2010 blog piece on rules for posting comments in my blog. A very simple guideline that anyone can understand and follow it, even a caveman can do that. I'm making this blog to clarify the one thing that a few deaf/hh people have brought up recently thinking that if they leave their name behind and I know who that person is they fear that I will delete their comment while still in moderation mode.
So far that has never happened. Go figure.
The rules I've posted back in 2010 are quite explicit and it doesn't matter if a person post his or her comments anonymously or post comments using their name identifiable to the public. To use the excuse that "I don't want to post my name because you will delete my comment because you don't like me" is a pathetic one if not a cowardly excuse. Bottom line, it doesn't matter if you want to post your comments anonymously or attach it with your name. My posting rules are to be followed. That is where I draw the line on whether a posted comment gets accepted. Extremely few comments do not get published compared to the thousands that do get through. I am a lot more lax than you think when it comes to moderating comments. But, please, please, do not use the lame excuse that just because you think I don't like you and that once you put your name out and I know who you are thinking that I will delete your comment as a result. Hardly. If you follow my posting rules, you're on safe grounds. Abuse your privilege here then expect your comments not to show up. Quite simple, really. Honest injun!
So far that has never happened. Go figure.
The rules I've posted back in 2010 are quite explicit and it doesn't matter if a person post his or her comments anonymously or post comments using their name identifiable to the public. To use the excuse that "I don't want to post my name because you will delete my comment because you don't like me" is a pathetic one if not a cowardly excuse. Bottom line, it doesn't matter if you want to post your comments anonymously or attach it with your name. My posting rules are to be followed. That is where I draw the line on whether a posted comment gets accepted. Extremely few comments do not get published compared to the thousands that do get through. I am a lot more lax than you think when it comes to moderating comments. But, please, please, do not use the lame excuse that just because you think I don't like you and that once you put your name out and I know who you are thinking that I will delete your comment as a result. Hardly. If you follow my posting rules, you're on safe grounds. Abuse your privilege here then expect your comments not to show up. Quite simple, really. Honest injun!
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Hiking for health and leisure
Hiking can be a fun, enjoyable and relaxing form of exercise. I know. I do a lot of hiking (here and here, for example) in my own leisure time. A chance to get outdoors and enjoy the sights, sound, smell, touch and taste of what nature can offer you whether it's plucking some huckleberries along the way to munch on or a get a whiff of wildflowers blooming along the grassy open meadows or seeing the vast openness and grandeur in front of you. Here's a video of a bunch of deaf hikers enjoying their day in the outdoors. Take some time to "get away from it all." Do something bold. Go outdoors and hike!
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Cord Blood Stem Cells Treatment for Children
I just couldn't believe it. I read in one discussion forum where one person made a big stink about a current year long study using a deaf baby's own cord blood stem cells to treat the baby's own sensorineural deafness (which has so far appears to continue to help restore the baby's hearing loss) saying it needs to be experimented on animals first to determine the safety of cord blood stem cells. First off, the blood cord stem cells are compatible only to the baby and not in some animal. That sort of ill-conceived logic was enough to make my jaw drop. Secondly, cord blood stem cells are being used to treat a variety of conditions and even injuries such as Traumatic Brain Injury in children in one study which uses the same IV infusion process as with deaf children in a hearing loss treatment Phase I study.
A ground-breaking clinical trial is now underway at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) is an innovative step in a growing number of studies exploring the potential of stem cell-based therapies to help initiate repair and induce healing of damaged brain tissue. The study is being performed in partnership with Children's Memorial Hermann Hospital, UTHealth's major children's teaching hospital.People need to understand the potential self-healing (literally) factors of using your own cord blood stem cells. According to The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) on cord blood stem cells:
The trial will involve children who have sustained traumatic brain injuries and who have access to their own umbilical cord blood stem cells, which were banked at birth. Children who meet the trial qualifications will travel to Children's Memorial Hermann Hospital to receive an IV infusion of their cord blood stem cells. They will then be followed at six months, one year and two years.
"The reason we have become interested in cord blood cells is because of the possibility of autologous therapy, meaning using your own cells. And the preclinical models have demonstrated some really fascinating neurological preservation effects to really support these Phase 1 trials," says Charles S. Cox, M.D., Children's Fund Distinguished Professor of Pediatric Surgery and Pediatrics at the UTHealth Medical School, director of the Pediatric Trauma Program at Children's Memorial Hermann Hosptial, and principle investigator of the trial. "There's anecdotal experience in other types of neurological injuries that reassures us in terms of the safety of the approach and there are some anecdotal hints at it being beneficial in certain types of brain injury."
The Phase I safety study will enroll 10 children ages 18 months to 17 years who have suffered moderate to severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) and are within 6 to 18 months of their injury.
Cord blood is one source of stem cells that has shown promise in preclinical research and is now being explored in experimental treatments for patients with brain injury. In the preclinical or lab setting, research has shown that cord blood stem cells have the ability to divide and change into neural-like cells. Additionally, these stem cells have been shown to migrate to the area of injury, and to secrete therapeutic factors, which may help repair brain damage. Further preliminary findings from studies underway at UTHealth indicate that cord blood stem cells may also alter the body's immune response to injury, by interacting directly with the organs and cells of the immune system that enable the body to better repair itself.In other words, you could possibly (and literally so) heal thyself using your own cord blood stem cells by enabling your body, in the example of hearing loss in babies, to better repair itself. Especially among babies who gets treated early on and with the help of their own cord blood stem cells, and if it turns out to be successful for the full restoration on hearing, then it becomes a cure. This process would allow deaf babies early on take advantage of the 4 year window of opportunity to take advantage of the active auditory cortex and be able to grow up as a hearing person in every respect. With this Traumatic Brain Injury study and the Hearing Loss study. We should know more the results of these studies by next year on whether cord blood stem cells treatment is a success or not.
Communication is a two way street...captioning, please!
The one thing I've learned in life is that people's perspectives are different from each other based on their life experiences, their upbringings, their interests, and the people they associate with on a daily basis. Those are the things that makes a person for who he or she it. I have met all kinds and are friends with them. Those who have mild hearing loss to those who are profoundly deaf to those who are culturally deaf to those who are hearing whether they know signing or not. And then you have those who prefer to speak/listen to those who prefer to sign only to those who prefer other methods of communicating. They have their own way of communicating and I respect that. That is not for me to judge. But the one common thing we all have in connection, especially among the 36 million people in the United States with hearing loss, is that many of us need captioning in our everyday lives.
But the funny thing is that some people do have a habit of judging others simply because they can hear a little bit better, talk a little bit better, sign a little bit better or the fact they prefer a different way of communicating. So, exactly what is the difference if deaf people on a theater stage signs in ASL but provide no captioning for the audience versus hearing people on a theater stage talking with no captioning for the audience to see what's being spoken? Both are purposefully excluding people who can't hear quite as well to understand fully the spoken words and those who know some, little or no sign language to understand fully what was signed. Both situations discriminate against the majority of people with hearing loss. Both situations do not invite people into their world because of their own ignorance. Just because a person is deaf or hard of hearing does not mean one is fluent in sign language or knows sign language. Just because a deaf or hard of hearing person can hear some words being spoken does not mean one can hear all of the words being spoken on a theater stage, on television, in a social setting, in a movie theater, and so on.
Why is it ok to have sign language interpreters at a rock concert but not captioning to help caption the lyrics being sung and to help caption what's being said on stage for the listening audience? Why is it ok to have a signing concert but no captioning for those who may not be able to understand it all or do not know sign language? Why is it ok to have a Deaf Awareness Day at Six Flags as a way to help promote awareness about deaf and hard of hearing people but only provide sign language interpreters throughout the park when being deaf or hard of hearing does not mean people magically know sign language? Communication is a two way street benefiting a variety of people with hearing loss and communication preferences. Providing captions help them feel they as if they are a part of a larger family.
But the funny thing is that some people do have a habit of judging others simply because they can hear a little bit better, talk a little bit better, sign a little bit better or the fact they prefer a different way of communicating. So, exactly what is the difference if deaf people on a theater stage signs in ASL but provide no captioning for the audience versus hearing people on a theater stage talking with no captioning for the audience to see what's being spoken? Both are purposefully excluding people who can't hear quite as well to understand fully the spoken words and those who know some, little or no sign language to understand fully what was signed. Both situations discriminate against the majority of people with hearing loss. Both situations do not invite people into their world because of their own ignorance. Just because a person is deaf or hard of hearing does not mean one is fluent in sign language or knows sign language. Just because a deaf or hard of hearing person can hear some words being spoken does not mean one can hear all of the words being spoken on a theater stage, on television, in a social setting, in a movie theater, and so on.
Why is it ok to have sign language interpreters at a rock concert but not captioning to help caption the lyrics being sung and to help caption what's being said on stage for the listening audience? Why is it ok to have a signing concert but no captioning for those who may not be able to understand it all or do not know sign language? Why is it ok to have a Deaf Awareness Day at Six Flags as a way to help promote awareness about deaf and hard of hearing people but only provide sign language interpreters throughout the park when being deaf or hard of hearing does not mean people magically know sign language? Communication is a two way street benefiting a variety of people with hearing loss and communication preferences. Providing captions help them feel they as if they are a part of a larger family.
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Sunday, June 10, 2012
The New Stem Cells Generation - going from deaf to hearing.
The stuff of science fiction has now arrived where Madeline becomes the first of many toddlers born deaf to get their first cord- blood stem cells treatments in the effort to restore their sensorineural hearing loss. This procedure continues to show success and Madeline's hearing continues to improve.
This will be the start of a new generation of cord-blood stem cell babies and toddlers born deaf to become, in theory, hearing with the help of their own blood-cord stem cells. An exciting era in regenerative medicine for parents of deaf children. This new cord-blood stem cell procedure was covered in my blog piece in January 2012 for your review.
Once proved successful parents of deaf babies will see this as the preferred treatment to help restore their child's hearing loss. This will certainly be a much preferable route (and cheaper, too) than to choose cochlear implant. Now the question becomes, will this eventually destroy the cochlear implant industry? Only time will tell.
Madeline Cooper, who is nearly 2 years old, is the first person in the nation to take part in a new Food and Drug Administration-approved study of stem cell treatment of sensorineural hearing loss.
Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston and California-based Cord Blood Registry will eventually enroll another nine children in this first phase of the study.
Unlike some advertised stem cell treatments that may cost patients tens of thousands of dollars — and, according to critics, are little more than quackery — the Conners paid nothing to take part and have been promised no specific results.
The process is simple: Doctors inject the children with stem cells from their own stored umbilical cords. Because it is the patients’ own blood, there is little chance the treatment will produce side effects.
In theory, the treatment will adjust patients’ immune systems to encourage their bodies to repair themselves. In truth, researchers have no idea if it will work.
Earlier Italian studies on mice concluded that stem cells may help the body repair damaged cells in the ear and restore some hearing in these types of cases, according to a 2008 published report in the University of South Florida journal Cell Transplantation.Madeline's hearing loss has gone from extreme to moderate hearing loss since undergoing the treatment. A definite improvement. This stem cell treatment will continue and may take a few years to help fully restore hearing loss. We will not know how fast this rate of restoration will take place over the next several months to a few years. We will know more once the Cooper family head back to Texas in July, and again in January of 2013, to get a more detailed assessment of Madeline’s improvement.
This will be the start of a new generation of cord-blood stem cell babies and toddlers born deaf to become, in theory, hearing with the help of their own blood-cord stem cells. An exciting era in regenerative medicine for parents of deaf children. This new cord-blood stem cell procedure was covered in my blog piece in January 2012 for your review.
Once proved successful parents of deaf babies will see this as the preferred treatment to help restore their child's hearing loss. This will certainly be a much preferable route (and cheaper, too) than to choose cochlear implant. Now the question becomes, will this eventually destroy the cochlear implant industry? Only time will tell.
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