Proceedings of the 5th International NCRAR Conference—Expanding Our Horizons: Medical Conditions and Audiology

This issue of Seminars in Hearing consists of articles that arose from the 5th National Center for Rehabilitative Auditory Research (NCRAR) biennial conference “Expanding Our Horizons: Medical Conditions and Audiology” that took place in Portland, Oregon, on October 12 to 14, 2011, and was attended by 160 clinicians, scientists, educators, and students from around the United States and abroad. The NCRAR hosts an international conference every 2 years, bringing together clinical researchers and practicing audiologists to our mutual benefit in an interactive format with the goal of translating research findings into practice. The objective of this particular conference was to expand knowledge and understanding of the interactions between the auditory system and other medical conditions and how these impact auditory intervention and rehabilitation because, for optimal function, the auditory system requires intact physiological systems throughout the body. Conditions that affect the vascular, endocrine, immune, and nervous systems also can detrimentally affect auditory system function, and the prevalence of such pathologies, such as autoimmune disease, multiple sclerosis, and diabetes, are rapidly increasing. Furthermore, with the aging of the population, the prevalence of stroke and dementia also is increasing. Clinicians need to consider these conditions during patient evaluations and be aware of the challenges posed by these factors to select the most effective methods for rehabilitation. Likewise, scientists need to be aware of the clinical issues these patients present to target research that can be translated from the laboratory into clinical practice. Our invited speakers gave podium presentations at the conference on a variety of these topics, including effects of hormones on auditory functions; epidemiological factors associated with hearing loss and tinnitus; interactions between cognitive function and auditory processing; immune-mediated inner ear disease and hearing loss; effects of drug abuse on auditory and vestibular functions; auditory processing in patients with multiple sclerosis; and auditory hallucinations. The main conference began with a keynote address by Dr. Karen Cruickshanks. She engaged the audience with her description of epidemiological evidence suggesting that hearing loss may signal risk for negative psychological impacts and that there are unmet needs for hearing screening and hearing healthcare. Thursday’s session began with a welcome from Dr. Patrick Feeney, the Director of the NCRAR, followed by fascinating presentations from Drs. Bob Frisina and Richard Smith. Dr. Frisina presented data showing that hormone replacement therapy and