A widely used media narrative suggests that the environment benefitted from the Covid-19 lockdown... more A widely used media narrative suggests that the environment benefitted from the Covid-19 lockdowns. Numerous publications which came out following the lockdowns only reinforced this view by seeing Covid-19 as an opportunity to think more about the environment. However, these narratives are largely anecdotal, assumptive and pay little attention to the question of what people actually think about the lockdowns in environmental terms. To fill this gap, this study provides the empirical basis needed to either support or reject the aforementioned dominant narrative on Covid-19 and environment. Survey data (eighty questionnaires per country) were collected from participants in Cameroon (Buea), Egypt (Cairo), Italy (several major cities) India (Mumbai and New Delhi), and The Netherlands (mainly Amsterdam). The findings of this study reveal that generally, Covid-19 has not changed the way most people think about the environment. This is either because people were already pro-environmental before Covid-19, or people see Covid-19 and the visible environmental changes as temporal phenomenon. One other major observation in this study is the regional differences in environmental attitudes in relation to Covid-19. The least change in environmental attitudes was observed in high-income countries and the most change in lowmiddle-income countries. Therefore, the paper concludes that the importance of Covid-19 on a more sustainable future should not be overplayed or overemphasised. It will take more than a two-year break from normal living to mitigate environmental degradation. Accordingly, pro-environmentalism should focus on other intervention points.
Objective To evaluate the audiologists’ attitudes and practice towards teleaudiology, as well as ... more Objective To evaluate the audiologists’ attitudes and practice towards teleaudiology, as well as to assess the audiological services provided in Egypt and Saudi Arabia during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods A cross sectional study was conducted among 112 audiologists who were recruited through convenience sampling . Multinomial logistic regression was used to test the association between practice of tele audiology as a dependent variable and some independent variables. Results 25.4% of the studied sample were practicing tele audiology. Participants’ age and attitude toward telemedicine were the independent predictors of tele audiology practice at p value ≤ 0.05. Conclusion The tele audiology practice is essential. Therefore, raising the knowledge of audiologist about the great value of practicing tele audiology is very important, infrastructure, equipment, and technology especially telecommunication should be improved and facilitated for both audiologist and patients.
Background Hearing loss is considered one of the most prevalent global health concerns. In Egypt,... more Background Hearing loss is considered one of the most prevalent global health concerns. In Egypt, the accurate estimation of hearing loss among children is difficult to be determined owing to the absence of a national hearing screening program until now. The parents play an important role in the process of hearing screening and intervention. Their knowledge and attitude certainly influence their decisions. Their decisions toward early identification and intervention of hearing loss may have lifelong effects on the infant’s life. Aim To assess the knowledge and attitude of Egyptian parents toward risk factors of infant hearing loss and its neonatal screening and treatment. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted among 384 Egyptian parents through convenience sampling technique using an online questionnaire over a period of 3 months (from August 2018 to November 2018). Results Overall, 51.6% of the parents who participated in the study had a good knowledge about hearing loss, an...
Objective This study was designed to explore the processing of auditory information through audit... more Objective This study was designed to explore the processing of auditory information through auditory brainstem and higher cortical regions in a sample of children with phonological errors compared to age-matched normal controls using AEPs. Subjects and Methods We recorded click and speech auditory brain-stem response and mismatch negativity in 30 children (15 children who were diagnosed clinically with phonological disorder, their ages ranged between 3.5–5.5 years, 15 children age-matched, sex matched and education matched with the study group, normal fluent speaker with no history of speech or language impairment). Results Absolute and inter-peak latency values of cABR demonstrated no statistically significant difference between the control and study groups. Moreover, All children had well identifiable and repeatable sABR and MMN but with delayed latencies in transient, transitional and sustained portions of speech-evoked ABR and MMN in study group when compared to control group. O...
Background Hearing loss is considered one of the most prevalent global health concerns. In Egypt,... more Background Hearing loss is considered one of the most prevalent global health concerns. In Egypt, the accurate estimation of hearing loss among children is difficult to be determined owing to the absence of a national hearing screening program until now. The parents play an important role in the process of hearing screening and intervention. Their knowledge and attitude certainly influence their decisions. Their decisions toward early identification and intervention of hearing loss may have lifelong effects on the infant’s life. Aim To assess the knowledge and attitude of Egyptian parents toward risk factors of infant hearing loss and its neonatal screening and treatment. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted among 384 Egyptian parents through convenience sampling technique using an online questionnaire over a period of 3 months (from August 2018 to November 2018). Results Overall, 51.6% of the parents who participated in the study had a good knowledge about hearing loss, an...
Objective: The study objective was to assess vestibular system either peripherally or centrally i... more Objective: The study objective was to assess vestibular system either peripherally or centrally in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) using video-nystagmography (VNG) and cervical vestibular-evoked myogenic potentials (cVEMP) in an Egyptian group of RA patients and to study whether there is a correlation between hearing levels, VNG, and cVEMP test results. Materials and Methods: This study was a comparative cross-sectional study. A total of forty individuals (twenty apparently healthy controls [40 ears] and twenty RA patients previously diagnosed by a rheumatologist [40 ears]) were included in the study. RA patients were recruited from the Rheumatology and Internal Medicine Departments of Zagazig University Hospitals. All participants gave their written consent before participation in the study. All participants in the study were subjected to basic audiological evaluation and vestibular evaluation (cVEMP-VNG). Results: There was a highly significant difference in VEMP latencies...
Objective: The aim of this study is to determine the efficacy of vestibular rehabilitation (VR) e... more Objective: The aim of this study is to determine the efficacy of vestibular rehabilitation (VR) exercise of patients with uncompensated unilateral peripheral vestibular dysfunction. Materials and Methods: An intervention study was conducted on 20 patients their age ranging from 20 to 60 years. The main complaint of the participants was chronic dizziness (dizziness for >3 months). Dizzy patients were recruited from the Ear, Nose, and Throat department. The study was conducted in the audiovestibular unit. All participants in the study were subjected to basic audiological evaluation and vestibular evaluation (videonystagmography). The Dizziness handicap inventory questionnaire (DHI) was carried out twice (pre and post) rehabilitation program. The VR therapy was performed according to the protocol established by Cawthorne and Cooksey and Norre exercises. Results: All the DHI scores reduced significantly after VR. There were no differences among genders; adults and elderly patients. C...
Objective To evaluate the audiologists’ attitudes and practice towards teleaudiology, as well as ... more Objective To evaluate the audiologists’ attitudes and practice towards teleaudiology, as well as to assess the audiological services provided in Egypt and Saudi Arabia during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods A cross sectional study was conducted among 112 audiologists who were recruited through convenience sampling . Multinomial logistic regression was used to test the association between practice of tele audiology as a dependent variable and some independent variables. Results 25.4% of the studied sample were practicing tele audiology. Participants’ age and attitude toward telemedicine were the independent predictors of tele audiology practice at p value ≤ 0.05. Conclusion The tele audiology practice is essential. Therefore, raising the knowledge of audiologist about the great value of practicing tele audiology is very important, infrastructure, equipment, and technology especially telecommunication should be improved and facilitated for both audiologist and patients.
Objective The aim of this study was to detect the effect of noise on the sacculocollic pathway us... more Objective The aim of this study was to detect the effect of noise on the sacculocollic pathway using cervical vestibular evoked myogenic potential (c-VEMP) and to check the correlation between the hearing thresholds and the c-VEMP responses in noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) patients. Patients and methods The study included 40 (80 ears) participants. Their ages ranged between 30 and 45 years. They were divided into two groups: 20 (40 ears) participants with NIHL presenting with bilateral notched audiogram at 4 kHz, and 20 (40 ears) participants as a control group. All participants in the study were subjected to basic audiological evaluation and VEMP tests. Results As the average pure-tone hearing threshold increased, the c-VEMP latencies prolonged and peak-to-peak amplitude reduced in NIHL patients. Of the 40 ears, c-VEMP was absent in 12 (30%) ears. The latencies prolonged and the peak-to-peak amplitude reduced in 16 (40%) ears. VEMP results were normal in 12 (30%) ears. Conclusi...
Introduction Otitis media with effusion (OME) is considered one of the most common disorders that... more Introduction Otitis media with effusion (OME) is considered one of the most common disorders that affect children during the first years of life. There are many risk factors of persistent middle ear effusion; one of these risk factors is gastroesophageal reflux. Association between persistent OME and gastroesophageal reflux diseases (GERDs) could be explained by respiratory tract infections, insufficient ciliary clearance, and poor drainage of the Eustachian tube. Objective To investigate whether the control of gastroesophageal reflux plays a role in the management of persistent OME and decreases tympanostomy tube insertion Method A cross-sectional study was conducted on 50 children complaining of persistent OME. Their ages ranged between 5 and 12 years old. All children were subjected to full history taking, audiological assessment and 24-hour esophageal pH monitoring. The study group was divided according to pH results into two groups: GERD positives and GERD negatives. Result The...
Introduction Hearing is important for the proper development of every child, especially for those... more Introduction Hearing is important for the proper development of every child, especially for those younger than 5 years of age, because it helps in the development of language and speech. Emotional and social problems, as well as issues with academic performance, can result from hearing loss even of mild degree. Early diagnosis and management can overcome those negative impacts. Objective To determine the prevalence of mild hearing loss in primary-school children and its association with their school performance. Methods A comparative cross-sectional study was conducted at a regular school. The study included the random selection of 120 apparently normal students (aged 6-9 years) who were considered as having normal hearing by their parents. A total of 20 students were excluded from the study due to the presence of wax in their ears. Finally, the study was conducted with 100 students. All participants were subjected to a basic audiological evaluation, and the Screening Instrument for...
A widely used media narrative suggests that the environment benefitted from the Covid-19 lockdown... more A widely used media narrative suggests that the environment benefitted from the Covid-19 lockdowns. Numerous publications which came out following the lockdowns only reinforced this view by seeing Covid-19 as an opportunity to think more about the environment. However, these narratives are largely anecdotal, assumptive and pay little attention to the question of what people actually think about the lockdowns in environmental terms. To fill this gap, this study provides the empirical basis needed to either support or reject the aforementioned dominant narrative on Covid-19 and environment. Survey data (eighty questionnaires per country) were collected from participants in Cameroon (Buea), Egypt (Cairo), Italy (several major cities) India (Mumbai and New Delhi), and The Netherlands (mainly Amsterdam). The findings of this study reveal that generally, Covid-19 has not changed the way most people think about the environment. This is either because people were already pro-environmental before Covid-19, or people see Covid-19 and the visible environmental changes as temporal phenomenon. One other major observation in this study is the regional differences in environmental attitudes in relation to Covid-19. The least change in environmental attitudes was observed in high-income countries and the most change in lowmiddle-income countries. Therefore, the paper concludes that the importance of Covid-19 on a more sustainable future should not be overplayed or overemphasised. It will take more than a two-year break from normal living to mitigate environmental degradation. Accordingly, pro-environmentalism should focus on other intervention points.
Objective To evaluate the audiologists’ attitudes and practice towards teleaudiology, as well as ... more Objective To evaluate the audiologists’ attitudes and practice towards teleaudiology, as well as to assess the audiological services provided in Egypt and Saudi Arabia during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods A cross sectional study was conducted among 112 audiologists who were recruited through convenience sampling . Multinomial logistic regression was used to test the association between practice of tele audiology as a dependent variable and some independent variables. Results 25.4% of the studied sample were practicing tele audiology. Participants’ age and attitude toward telemedicine were the independent predictors of tele audiology practice at p value ≤ 0.05. Conclusion The tele audiology practice is essential. Therefore, raising the knowledge of audiologist about the great value of practicing tele audiology is very important, infrastructure, equipment, and technology especially telecommunication should be improved and facilitated for both audiologist and patients.
Background Hearing loss is considered one of the most prevalent global health concerns. In Egypt,... more Background Hearing loss is considered one of the most prevalent global health concerns. In Egypt, the accurate estimation of hearing loss among children is difficult to be determined owing to the absence of a national hearing screening program until now. The parents play an important role in the process of hearing screening and intervention. Their knowledge and attitude certainly influence their decisions. Their decisions toward early identification and intervention of hearing loss may have lifelong effects on the infant’s life. Aim To assess the knowledge and attitude of Egyptian parents toward risk factors of infant hearing loss and its neonatal screening and treatment. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted among 384 Egyptian parents through convenience sampling technique using an online questionnaire over a period of 3 months (from August 2018 to November 2018). Results Overall, 51.6% of the parents who participated in the study had a good knowledge about hearing loss, an...
Objective This study was designed to explore the processing of auditory information through audit... more Objective This study was designed to explore the processing of auditory information through auditory brainstem and higher cortical regions in a sample of children with phonological errors compared to age-matched normal controls using AEPs. Subjects and Methods We recorded click and speech auditory brain-stem response and mismatch negativity in 30 children (15 children who were diagnosed clinically with phonological disorder, their ages ranged between 3.5–5.5 years, 15 children age-matched, sex matched and education matched with the study group, normal fluent speaker with no history of speech or language impairment). Results Absolute and inter-peak latency values of cABR demonstrated no statistically significant difference between the control and study groups. Moreover, All children had well identifiable and repeatable sABR and MMN but with delayed latencies in transient, transitional and sustained portions of speech-evoked ABR and MMN in study group when compared to control group. O...
Background Hearing loss is considered one of the most prevalent global health concerns. In Egypt,... more Background Hearing loss is considered one of the most prevalent global health concerns. In Egypt, the accurate estimation of hearing loss among children is difficult to be determined owing to the absence of a national hearing screening program until now. The parents play an important role in the process of hearing screening and intervention. Their knowledge and attitude certainly influence their decisions. Their decisions toward early identification and intervention of hearing loss may have lifelong effects on the infant’s life. Aim To assess the knowledge and attitude of Egyptian parents toward risk factors of infant hearing loss and its neonatal screening and treatment. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted among 384 Egyptian parents through convenience sampling technique using an online questionnaire over a period of 3 months (from August 2018 to November 2018). Results Overall, 51.6% of the parents who participated in the study had a good knowledge about hearing loss, an...
Objective: The study objective was to assess vestibular system either peripherally or centrally i... more Objective: The study objective was to assess vestibular system either peripherally or centrally in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) using video-nystagmography (VNG) and cervical vestibular-evoked myogenic potentials (cVEMP) in an Egyptian group of RA patients and to study whether there is a correlation between hearing levels, VNG, and cVEMP test results. Materials and Methods: This study was a comparative cross-sectional study. A total of forty individuals (twenty apparently healthy controls [40 ears] and twenty RA patients previously diagnosed by a rheumatologist [40 ears]) were included in the study. RA patients were recruited from the Rheumatology and Internal Medicine Departments of Zagazig University Hospitals. All participants gave their written consent before participation in the study. All participants in the study were subjected to basic audiological evaluation and vestibular evaluation (cVEMP-VNG). Results: There was a highly significant difference in VEMP latencies...
Objective: The aim of this study is to determine the efficacy of vestibular rehabilitation (VR) e... more Objective: The aim of this study is to determine the efficacy of vestibular rehabilitation (VR) exercise of patients with uncompensated unilateral peripheral vestibular dysfunction. Materials and Methods: An intervention study was conducted on 20 patients their age ranging from 20 to 60 years. The main complaint of the participants was chronic dizziness (dizziness for >3 months). Dizzy patients were recruited from the Ear, Nose, and Throat department. The study was conducted in the audiovestibular unit. All participants in the study were subjected to basic audiological evaluation and vestibular evaluation (videonystagmography). The Dizziness handicap inventory questionnaire (DHI) was carried out twice (pre and post) rehabilitation program. The VR therapy was performed according to the protocol established by Cawthorne and Cooksey and Norre exercises. Results: All the DHI scores reduced significantly after VR. There were no differences among genders; adults and elderly patients. C...
Objective To evaluate the audiologists’ attitudes and practice towards teleaudiology, as well as ... more Objective To evaluate the audiologists’ attitudes and practice towards teleaudiology, as well as to assess the audiological services provided in Egypt and Saudi Arabia during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods A cross sectional study was conducted among 112 audiologists who were recruited through convenience sampling . Multinomial logistic regression was used to test the association between practice of tele audiology as a dependent variable and some independent variables. Results 25.4% of the studied sample were practicing tele audiology. Participants’ age and attitude toward telemedicine were the independent predictors of tele audiology practice at p value ≤ 0.05. Conclusion The tele audiology practice is essential. Therefore, raising the knowledge of audiologist about the great value of practicing tele audiology is very important, infrastructure, equipment, and technology especially telecommunication should be improved and facilitated for both audiologist and patients.
Objective The aim of this study was to detect the effect of noise on the sacculocollic pathway us... more Objective The aim of this study was to detect the effect of noise on the sacculocollic pathway using cervical vestibular evoked myogenic potential (c-VEMP) and to check the correlation between the hearing thresholds and the c-VEMP responses in noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) patients. Patients and methods The study included 40 (80 ears) participants. Their ages ranged between 30 and 45 years. They were divided into two groups: 20 (40 ears) participants with NIHL presenting with bilateral notched audiogram at 4 kHz, and 20 (40 ears) participants as a control group. All participants in the study were subjected to basic audiological evaluation and VEMP tests. Results As the average pure-tone hearing threshold increased, the c-VEMP latencies prolonged and peak-to-peak amplitude reduced in NIHL patients. Of the 40 ears, c-VEMP was absent in 12 (30%) ears. The latencies prolonged and the peak-to-peak amplitude reduced in 16 (40%) ears. VEMP results were normal in 12 (30%) ears. Conclusi...
Introduction Otitis media with effusion (OME) is considered one of the most common disorders that... more Introduction Otitis media with effusion (OME) is considered one of the most common disorders that affect children during the first years of life. There are many risk factors of persistent middle ear effusion; one of these risk factors is gastroesophageal reflux. Association between persistent OME and gastroesophageal reflux diseases (GERDs) could be explained by respiratory tract infections, insufficient ciliary clearance, and poor drainage of the Eustachian tube. Objective To investigate whether the control of gastroesophageal reflux plays a role in the management of persistent OME and decreases tympanostomy tube insertion Method A cross-sectional study was conducted on 50 children complaining of persistent OME. Their ages ranged between 5 and 12 years old. All children were subjected to full history taking, audiological assessment and 24-hour esophageal pH monitoring. The study group was divided according to pH results into two groups: GERD positives and GERD negatives. Result The...
Introduction Hearing is important for the proper development of every child, especially for those... more Introduction Hearing is important for the proper development of every child, especially for those younger than 5 years of age, because it helps in the development of language and speech. Emotional and social problems, as well as issues with academic performance, can result from hearing loss even of mild degree. Early diagnosis and management can overcome those negative impacts. Objective To determine the prevalence of mild hearing loss in primary-school children and its association with their school performance. Methods A comparative cross-sectional study was conducted at a regular school. The study included the random selection of 120 apparently normal students (aged 6-9 years) who were considered as having normal hearing by their parents. A total of 20 students were excluded from the study due to the presence of wax in their ears. Finally, the study was conducted with 100 students. All participants were subjected to a basic audiological evaluation, and the Screening Instrument for...
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