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Mandated cCMV screening improves early identification of infant hearing loss

A new retrospective cohort study examining the impact of Minnesota's first-in-the-nation mandated universal newborn screening for congenital cytomegalovirus (cCMV) shows that universal screening significantly decreased the age at first audiology visit and increased identification of mild hearing loss in infants.

2 Mar 2026

Toddler thrives after receiving newly FDA-approved cochlear implant system

Six months after becoming the first patient in the United States to receive a newly FDA-approved cochlear implant system, 18-month-old Nene Gudavadze is responding to sound, dancing to music, and saying her first words.

27 Feb 2026

Assessing long-term cognitive risks in ependymoma survivors

A study led by St. Jude Children's Research Hospital assessed cognitive and communication abilities in children treated for the brain tumor ependymoma to understand the impact of treatment better. They found that radiation was a significant contributor to hearing loss, a risk directly linked to cognitive health.

23 Feb 2026

AI model forecasts bone removal in cochlear implant surgery

Cochlear implant surgery helps people with severe hearing loss by placing an electronic device inside the inner ear. To reach the inner ear, surgeons must first remove part of a bone behind the ear, in a procedure called mastoidectomy.

23 Feb 2026

New Orleans brings back the house call, sending nurses to visit newborns and moms

When Lisa Bonfield gave birth to daughter Adele in late November, she was thrust into the new world of parenting, and faced an onslaught of challenges and skills to learn: breastfeeding, diapering, sleep routines, colic, crying, and all the little warning signs that something could be wrong with the baby.

23 Feb 2026

As more Americans embrace anxiety treatment, MAHA derides medications

After a grueling year of chemotherapy, surgery, and radiation to treat breast cancer, Sadia Zapp was anxious — not the manageable hum that had long been part of her life, but something deeper, more distracting.

23 Feb 2026

Study reveals unexpected role of TMC proteins in deafness

Proteins long known to be essential for hearing have been hiding a talent: they also act as gatekeepers that shuffle fatty molecules across cell membranes.

22 Feb 2026

Genetic differences may shape emotional reactions to art

Why do some people feel chills when listening to music, reading poetry, or viewing a powerful work of art, while others do not? New research by Giacomo Bignardi and his colleagues from Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics (MPI) published in PLOS Genetics reveals that part of the answer lies in our genes.

22 Feb 2026

Study reveals long-term health risks after chemotherapy for testicular cancer

A large, multi-center study recently published online in the Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (JNCCN) provides new insight into the long-term health effects of contemporary chemotherapy regimens used to treat testicular cancer, highlighting differences in renal function, cardiovascular risk, and the overall burden of chronic health conditions among survivors.

19 Feb 2026

An Arm and a Leg: Personal finance guru faces down an insurance denial

Less than 36 hours before his wife was scheduled to undergo major surgery, New York Times personal finance columnist Ron Lieber got an unwelcome letter from his family's insurance plan: It was denying prior authorization for the procedure.

19 Feb 2026

Wyoming wants to make its five-year federal rural health funding last ‘forever’

Wyoming officials say they have a plan to make five years of upcoming grants from a new $50 billion federal rural health program last "forever."

18 Feb 2026

Oxygen-delivering gel heals chronic wounds in mice

As aging populations and rising diabetes rates drive an increase in chronic wounds, more patients face the risk of amputations.

17 Feb 2026

Musicians experience higher rates of tinnitus, hearing loss, and hyperacusis than non-musicians

A new systematic review and meta-analysis published in Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, the official journal of the American Academy of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery Foundation (AAO-HNSF), reveals that musicians face substantially higher rates of tinnitus, hearing loss, and hyperacusis compared to non-musicians.

17 Feb 2026

Specific neurobiological link identified between hearing loss and cognitive decline

Presbycusis is a prevalent form of age-related hearing loss that also hinders speech recognition. While scientists have linked hearing loss to an increased risk of cognitive decline, the biological "bridge" between the two has remained unclear.

16 Feb 2026

RFK Jr. made promises in order to become health secretary. He’s broken many of them.

One year after taking charge of the nation’s health department, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. hasn’t held true to many of the promises he made while appealing to U.S. senators concerned about the longtime anti-vaccine activist’s plans for the nation’s care.

13 Feb 2026