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A first-ever national representative sample of hearing loss in the United States finds that 48 million Americans have significant hearing loss in one or both ears.
Nearly one in five Americans has significant hearing loss, far more than previously estimated, a first-ever national analysis finds.
That means more than 48 million people across the United States have impairments so severe that it’s impossible for them to make out what a companion is saying over the din of a crowded restaurant, said Dr. Frank Lin, author of a new study published in the latest issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine.
“It’s pretty jaw-dropping how big it is,” said Lin, an assistant professor of otolaryngology and epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.
Previous estimates had pegged the number affected by hearing loss at between 21 million and 29 million.
Lin and other researchers were surprised at the magnitude of the problem, but the significance of the findings goes beyond the “wow” factor, he said.
That’s because other studies have shown that hearing decline is often accompanied by losses in cognition and memory. Further, Lin said, some studies have associated hearing loss with a greater risk of dementia.
Lin’s study is the first to look at the hearing loss in a national sample of Americans aged 12 and older who have actually had their hearing tested. Earlier studies were smaller or depended on people’s self-reports of hearing loss.
For the new study, Lin and his colleagues analyzed data collected as part of the National Health and Nutritional Examination Surveys (NHANES), a research program that has periodically gathered information from thousands of Americans since 1971.
Using the World Health Organization’s definition for hearing loss as not being able to hear sounds of 25 decibels or less in the frequencies for speaking, the researchers found that about 30 million Americans, or nearly 13 percent of the population, had hearing loss in both ears.
That number jumped to about 48 million, or more than 20 percent of the population, by adding people with loss in just one ear.
Many people begin to lose their hearing in their 50s, Lin said. And the process is so gradual that they barely notice. That’s one of the reasons earlier studies found lower numbers of people with hearing loss, Lin said.
“Young people will come in with hearing loss from an infection and they feel so impaired that they can’t do their jobs,” Lin said. “But a lot of times, their hearing loss isn’t as bad as what we see in someone in their 60s who has learned to live with it.”
Because of the association with memory problems, loss of cognition and dementia, Lin would like to see more middle-aged people and seniors getting tested -- and treated -- for hearing loss. Now, the problem is often ignored, he said.
“If a 10-year-old has mild-to-moderate hearing loss, universally clinicians, insurers, and society say we’ve got to treat it,” Lin said. “But if you have the same hearing loss in someone who is 60, universally you get a shrug. That person still has to go to board meetings and hear people over dinner. But we don’t think it’s important for him to get treated.”
Other posts by Linda Carroll:
- Hefty wager: Lose weight or lose your money
- Turn off peanut allergies? Scientists may know how
- 'Natural' diet pills tainted with prescription drug
Leave a Comment:
WHAT??!?!?!??
We're wearing moss!!
Murmuring boss? What about a murmuring boss? Why don't you tell him to stop mumbling, and articulate!
Dammit, speak up !!
.
I suggest a much larger percentage than even what you quote might have some form of hearing loss. And further, there are different kinds of loss, not just one-eared problem.
Why not address the fact that many do not have a problem with simple volume of another's speech.... but the blending of individual sounds within the words... missing vowels sounds or even certain consonant sounds.
Another problem is speed of speech. Sometimes, again, it isn't the volume it is another person who is rattling off words so quickly that those definitive sounds within the word itself are blurring together.
The kind of phone one uses, or the type of connection it has... land line, vs. modem, vs wireless (with all the ticky tacky techy toys and cell phone proliferating), it isn't just human voices and speech that are being inadequately delivered, it is the different tones... falsetto vs. lower tones.
These factors deserved a better article. And solutions for each at least touched upon. Anybody who might recognize these difficulties should check with a good hearing doctor.
Then, of course, comes the treatment; hearing aids are costly. If there are other ways we can improve hearing, it would be newsworthy, at least, to .. er ... hear of them.
huhh? yes my Mum who is 85, I can drive to her home on 10 acres with my muffler off and she does not know I am there until she sees me and that is when she expects me, now eyesight, that woman could line up a oh I can't resist, a republican turd and hit it square in the arse at 100 meters
Earplugs. Wear them or lose your hearing. The best earplug is made by Winchester at Walmart sport section for only $3 a pair. Comfortable and very effective. I wear them when I use power tools, lawnmower, vacuum cleaner, ATV, my noisy diesel truck, shooting, fireworks. When a fire truck goes by, put your fingers in your ears.
Even better than $3 a pair, are the disposable foam ones that are rated 31 dB or better. You can get them for $5 a box, which is usually about 20 pair. I use them when I go shooting, makes my AKM sound like popcorn in the microwave.
If you are looking for more information, check with a Sertoma Club if you have one in your area. Sertoma is short for Service to Mankind - a service club - and their focus is on the speech and hearing-impaired.
Just FYI, not so much now, but in the past many children were thought to be retarded because they were deaf, and hence, could not speak.
Have your child's hearing checked. Wear ear plugs when noise levels are high. Keep the volume down on your music.
And if the spirit moves you, there's probably a Sertoma Club chapter that would love to have you as a member.
You forgot, you should always wear them when the wife is screaming while having sex also.
I use earplugs if my wife is saying anything at all. It's just too risky.
And the younger generation will be deaf before they are 40 with the volume they play their sound systems at.....especially the sub-base speakers that can be FELT a block or more from the vehicle they are driving. When every part in a auto is shaking and rattling from the sub-base, you know they have it too loud. There is nothing worse than music played so loud that it can be heard a mile or more from the source. That has become the "culture" of the US Virgin Islands. Every event that involves the younger generations has music that is no longer music, just noise all because of the volume it is played at. During our Christmas Festival on St. Croix (our version of Carnivale/Mardi Gras), the music can be heard and felt three miles from the festivities......yes, I said three miles.....I know someone who lives that distance from the ballpark where the Christmas Village is centered and they complain all the time about everything in their house rattling because of the volume of the noise.
anti-trust... you are absolutely right.
I cannot understand why parents today cannot seem to teach their youngsters self-discipline... let alone understanding that "discipline" is not a dirty word.
Amen anti-trust proponent!
And , AND, in addition to the loud sub-base, to attract even more attention to themselves they have to have the loudest exhaust possible on whatever they drive, and the smaller the vehicle the louder it has to be. Something to do with "small organ compensation", I imagine.
And, when it comes to "loud vehicle/ small-organ compensation", nothing compares to a Harley-Davidson owner.
When they go by I just think to myself, enjoy your hearing loss, stupid.
Matt,
The foam earplugs are good, reduces the noise much better than most. But if you wear them all the time like I do, the constant effort to compress the foam, the irritation caused by the pulling in and out of the canal and pressure of the foam on the canal after it expands begins to hurt. The Winchester plugs don't need to be compressed and has a tiny handle which you push in and pull out. It is very convenient and you can pull it in and out all day without irritation. And they come with a retaining string to place around your neck.
A loud exhaust on a motorcycle is actually a decent safety device, it lets other drivers know there is a motorcycle present. Granted, some riders take it to the extreme...
Until insurance companies start covering some of the cost of hearing aids it's pointless for a lot of people to get tested. They cover glasses-why is sight more important than hearing?
Tell me about it. Both my husband and I wear hearing aids - bilateral (both ears). WE have had to pay the ENTIRE cost for them.
To be fair, however, insurance companies pay diddly squat for glasses too. $60 or so doesn't even begin to cover mine... (Try $800)... :(
Why grandma and grandpa can't hear you: Medicare doesn't cover the cost of the hearing aids they need and can't afford to buy.
There is another anomaly in today's culture. Today's popular "music." It's not even close to what real music is. It is semi-talented and obviously untrained singers belting out their pseudo-music. I call it the era of the screaming falsettos. And I mean literally screaming/screeching voices delivering today's songs.
Hasn't anyone told them they are destroying their voices. Bette Midler is a case in point. She's in her 50s now and she has a badly damaged voice (and probably doesn't even know why.) It isn't age either. I'm not particularly an opera fan, but at least their voices are trained. Still, the opera sopranos must especially manage to protect their voices from becoming a screech.
I'm lucky indeed ... I uploaded music when I first accessed the Internet almost 15 years ago. My tastes are not that restricted... I have top stuff from Hayden and Mozart to good Country Western... and music popular in the 20th Century from Al Jolson (what an incredible baritone voice he had) through the Carpenters, Acker Bilk, Garth Brooks, and yes, Bette Midler, and Bob Dylan... and many more of the mid and later of our prior Century.
But nothing coming out today interests me... lol and my youngsters do not play any music for which I would have to put ear plugs on in the house.. but they hear mine... and it's amazing.
They actually like most of it... even Beethoven and Wagner.
The biggest scam is hearing aids. Have any of you priced them? Being a retired purchasing agent I can tell you the cost to make them is small. I used to buy electronic parts, set up molding and etc. and if it costs $100 to make a hearing aid that would be pushing it and they charge thousands of dollars for them. Is it a wonder that the insurance companies what nothing to do with them. My husband wears aids in both ears and we paid over $6000 for both only because he attends allot of meetings and has to be to hear what is being said and still misses allot of what is being said. Do not let these companies fool you the tech is out there to make good aids but they know they have a good money making item and won't give it up because people need them and are willing to pay for them.
It's a case of supply and demand. You are paying for the research and development that goes into the devices. The demand is low, so the prices are higher.
Also, $6000 for a set of hearing aids suggests a high end model. Just like cars, there are different models at different price tags. One person might pay $6000 for a set, and another will pay $2000 for a set. Comparing it to cars, someone might pay $10,000 for a new car but someone else will pay $1 million.
Most people damge their hearing by not protecting their ears. The noise level is very high in many public places, including shopping malls, indoor sports games, movie theaters, outdoor music festivals and surround-sound players and TV which contributes to ear damage. I'm over 70 years old and have unimpaired hearing because I have always protected my ears from loud noises. I carry earplugs with me and use them whenever the noise is loud. This Saturday I ate at a sports bar and immediately used them. All the people around me just ignored the dangerous noise level and were “sitting ducks" for damage to their ears.
DID YOU SAY BLURRING GLOSS OR SHEARING FLOSS?
I make fun of it because I'm the 1 in 5. I was born with a hearing loss. It's annoying to have to ask "what?" or "pardon" more often then some, but it makes for some fun sentence mistakes, too.
and leon - some companies do. Look up EPIC. You see sight covered more because we are acutely more reliant on sight than sound. I use sight to make up for some of my loss of hearing.
Wait could you say that again- on this side though?
That's my son's response. He was born deaf in one ear. Obviously, hearing loss is NOT just noise related, many use those plugs or full headsets to protect what hearing they have.
Children are covered by insurance more often than adults.
I'm not the least bit surprised. Any evening the music our neighbors are playing inside their cars as they drive up the street can be heard in our home even with our television turned on. We can be driving down the street with the windows rolled up in our car and someone drives by with their windows rolled up and we can hear their music.
As a child I spent many hours on the pistol range with my father and my hearing was adversely affected. But I would wager my hearing at my ripe age is better than what their hearing will be when they get to be my age.
A friend who is hearing impaired from birth cannot believe people would risk their hearing by playing their music so loud.
Audiologists are going to be making a fortune on the idiots who have no clue or do not care what they are doing to their hearing.
What?
I am totally deaf in my left ear. I have bilateral menieres disease and have had this since age 12. As I sit and type this I have vertigo and the sound of a jet engine in my head. What is frustrating for me is the attitude of the insurance companies and health care providers. I have been fighting for 5 years to get an implant for my left ear. I am told over and over I have to wait until I go 100% deaf before I can be helped. Eventually that will happen but at 44 why should I have to wait. The other issue is frustration from others. Sometimes being deaf would be simpler. Being hard of hearing can be frustrating for other people so one has to practice patience with yourself and others.
Good hearing aids these days cost $3-5 k...and are very small. I always wonder why they cost so much with so little in material..guess they have gold inside of them.
The same applies with pretty much every other gadget: The smaller the parts the more work goes into it to putting it together.
Get it?
So Olias,
Ever look inside a cell phone? Hundreds of very, very small parts. Much, much more complicated and sophsticated than even the most expensive hearing aid, and they damn near give those away. They're disposable!
So much for the "small parts/more work" theory huh?
Mike277 the hearing aid people know a good money making thing and will not change it. As I said in a post above I used buy parts like go in the aids and they don't cost that much. ie a roll of 10k caps goes for $25.00 and lets say there are 4 caps in each aid, that is a penny per aid at the most, now with tech of a pik -n- place, a re-flow, they can do thousand of these mini boards a day. The set-up would be the biggest cost but would realized in less than days sales. I did this for over 30 years for different items that included items for the government. I could take to down to how many of these tiny boards per standard boards and how many parts per tiny boards if you want. Like I said it is the biggest scam going.
I need a hearing aid and I hate having to buy one because I know I will get taken on the price. We need a hearing aid website like car buyers have to compare price, quality, etc.
You need to compare hearing care providers...not hearing aids. Call your insurance company to see if they recommend anyone in your area. If your insurance company is comfortable enough to work with someone then you should feel confident in working with them also.
Hearing aid providers are in it not to help, but to keep you spending on newer and newer models they claim perform bettter. There should be a government controlled site to report some as not being honest and/or not honoring their contracts after hearing aids are paid for and/or other ongoing problems we have with those provider service. I called ASHA to complain and they advised me to hire a lawyer, or State License Board (they did not honor their contract) and/or go all the way to the Attorney General....They are ripping off the needy....they must be controlled.
Illinois you are find that they all cost about the same no matter where you look. Been there done that.
ASHA is for audiologists. Was the person you saw an audiologist?
huh?? seriously...most of you mumble something while walking away or looking down at your phone,gfy,I don't care what you said....and you don't care to hear my needs
In front of the P/A @ Deep Purple 1974....the rest is History
YellaHammer
Rolling Stones- Cow Palace-70s. My ears rang for three days. But I was invincible. Now I'm freakin' deaf!
Stereo on "10" w/ headphones all thru the '60s didn't help either.
Glad stereos didn't go to "11" !
6 years as a jet mech USMC. Ear protection? HELL no! ( see; "invincible")
Peace
(which I have now, constantly, 'cause I can't hear a damn thing!;>)
It's cause by all the tiny tean-age genitalia driving around these day's. Must be tiny because that is the only possible reason to feel a need to compensate with those great big ear damaging sub woofers that can be heard by the dead at fifteen blocks..
Agree, max!
See my post @ 2.7
Let's see....I think I remember the LSD music in the late 60's. Anyone remember that? Or we were trying to see how high our sound systems would go??? Yep, we most likely did it to ourselves.
And since I need 2 hearing aids & they start around $800 ea & go up to....maybe $4000-5000 each....would ya'al mind talking a little louder please!? And enunciate clearly too please!
@ pinecone: I didn't use LSD but loved the music. There's no way one could listen to In a Gadda da Vida at normal volume - even to this day! Even at 58, I still LOVE the 80's 'hair metal' and love it LOUD! Back 'in the day' I was one of those you certainly didn't want to be next to at a traffic light (my apologies to all the other drivers I tormented with the Scorpions, Def Leppard, Alice Cooper, even Three Dog Night going way back, among many more).
I'll be first to admit my hearing loss is self-inflicted. Hearing loss in left ear but haven't investigated hearing aids yet. Too afraid of what to encounter for pricing, but now getting some idea after reading this.
Now when I see all the young people these days with their iPods and MP3 players, can't help but wonder what the volume is and if they even care about how this will affect their hearing years from now. I knew at the time my music was too loud and WOULD affect my hearing as I got older but that was a risk I was willing to take in order to FEEL the music.
Oddly enough, my iPod won't go to damaging levels. And the stock earbuds "bleed" a lot of sound ... so a lot of sound gets in (I don't miss the ringing phone) and a lot of sound gets out (everyone knows what I'm listening to).
@YellaHammer - Frank Zappa concert about 1974 or 75: 3rd row in front of P/A (ears ringing for at least 3 days). Good concert though!
Led Zeppelin did me in. Can we sue now? LOL Don't tell the nuts that sued over some Roaches On A Plane......RAID
My hearing is just fine, its just all that constant ringing!!! What What? Ok just cell phones :)
for me it was USAF jet engines thank god the va covers it.
My hearing loss (up to 70 decibels above 1000 hertz) was from wearing headphones in the USAF for up to 15 hours a day while flying in virtually uninsulated jets. I was fitted with hearing aids just last Monday and I am only 49.
Thankfully, they were covered, but my hearing aids cost $3500 per ear.
For the record, I was never into loud music, like kids today, who live with their iPods pumped up.
In 1960, in Army Basic Training, at the rifle range it was a court marshal offense to wear anything in your ears for protection. The fear was that you couldn't hear range commands.
In my case, even though I was a recruit, because I was an accomplished rifle marksman, I was selected to coach those recruits who were having trouble. That process involved lying down along side of, and ahead of, the recruit in prone position so that you could look in his eyes while he was shooting (actually, flinching, in most cases). In that position, the coach's right ear was right next to the receiver of the M1, with the bolt slamming back against the receiver with each round, and on the eighth round the "whang" of the clip being ejected. 64 rounds for each recruit you coached.
Needless to say, since that experience, my right ear has been a disaster.
I am told that the Veterans Administration has no interest at all in older veterans whose ears were ruined during basic training. I'm also told the Army eventually relented and allowed ear protection, and that it became a court marshal offense to NOT wear hearing protection.
My hearing loss began in basic training rifle qualification 1969. Hearing protectors didn't fit right and fell to the dirt when firing the 7.62 M-14. My ears rang for weeks after but the Army docs said my hearing at end of active duty was better than when I entered service.
Forty years later, the VA says I must prove my hearing loss is service related. How do you do that?
Did you get a hearing test before you entered the military and then another one before you left? If so, there is your proof. You can also make an appointment to be assessed at the VA. You will most likely have to see an Ear Nose and Throat doctor and an audiologist.
pinecone...........don't really remember that. My hearing was lost thanks to the 90MM on an M48 tank and the 105 on the M60. Have never heard well since the late 60's.
It is high time the "hearing aid peddlers" in california, ( and i imagine all over the us)
lost there choke hold on the hard of hearing by having a law in place that prevents
the selling or buy by mail od hearing devices from other companies. my aids cost
oner $5,000 for two of them. just because they are so small does not justify such
a price. Just look at the mini electronic stuff on the market that in no way comes
close to the assinine price of hearing aids. also, some "hearing devices" in ads
from catalogs i get that sell all kins of stuff, the ad says "not available in california"
thats bull pucky--some one in sacramento is getting paid to keep that "law" going.
hearing aids are mass produced, like all other electronic stuff--their is only one
reason they cost so much-----political graft. If it will take violence to stop it--
I, for one, will be in the front line. lets hear (no pun) from you that are ready
and willing to put a stop to it. millions of our fellow Americans are suffering fro
hearing loss but can't afford the da things----lets put a stop to it.........come on
"Uncle Sam"===you for the people or just for the bribe?????
I have severe hearing loss. I'm 59 years old and I have worked in manufacturing all my life. You can't imagine how debilitating hearing loss is. I avoid meetings at work. I can not understand normal conversation in a room. I can no longer watch T.V. and enjoy it and my family suffers from the volume full blast. I wear hearing aids. Siemans supposed to be the highest of technology but they help very little. They magnify sound but you still can't understand what the words are someone is saying. All the hearing centers I've been to are nothing more than scam artist making a fortune on hearing aids and offering little else. These people remind me of vacuum clearner salesman. Until some real money and research is put into solving hearing problems its going to get worse. I can't understand anyone on the phone I have to text. My little grandkids scream in my ears trying to talk to me. When I retire I'm hiring the best Lawyer I can find and sueing the hell out of my employer but that won't bring my hearing back.
Tinitus is not necessarily caused by loud music or sounds....Sometimes its a condition...No drug has been found to stop tinitus...Many people suffer from ringing in their ear...One doctor recommended stop eating foods with chocolate and high concentrations of caffeine...I have a cochlear implant and a hearing aid....I used to suffer from tinitus from time to time but since I was implanted it stopped..
I am not saying this will happen to all people...There are too many factors involved when it comes to tinitus..
Truthhurts you should be tested to see if you qualify for a cochlear implant...Check out Hearing Loss Association of America.com Many people there in our forums and our chat rooms can help you with your problem...Before my cochlear implant young children I could never understand...Today I can converse with the ones with the highest voice...Its not a miracle by any means...But the closest to one I ever experienced in my life
in other words this gave me a whole new lease on life
truthhurts my Husband is right there with you only his aids are Bell and they do not do what we were told.
Hearing Aids are made for the most part on the Asian rim. Labor there as we all know is a staggering .32 cents per hour. You tell me why with less than 7.00 in raw materials and .32 cents per hour labor hearing aids cost 5,000.00.
Last time I checked, custom hearing aids are made in american factories. Ask the person who sold you the hearing aid where it's made.
Possibly, the behind the ear type are made in China, but the custom ones are all made here.
What some of you are missing is that hearing care providers fight for hearing aid coverage just as much as our patients. I am a licensed hearing professional and when I was in graduate school, many of my fellow classmates and professors spent many days and nights writing to Congress and our local senators to fight for the coverage of hearing aids. The cost of hearing aids has very little to do with the amount of material that it takes to make them. On behalf of the hearing care professionals, we are not allowed to bill insurance companies for your testing, your programming, your follow up visits (and believe me, there are many), your routine cleanings and maintenance of hearing aids (yes, they require maintenance much like eyeglasses and contact lenses)...all over the course of 5 years which is the average life span of a hearing aid. Hearing aids are small, electronic devices that are worn in or near an ear that is 98 degrees and is exposed to many different elements (humidity, rain, snow, extreme heat, extreme cold) so yes, they eventually wear out. Just like computers, digital camera, plasma tvs...they all have life spans. So please make sure that you understand that hearing care professionals do not make a dime off the sale of a hearing aid other than a very small commission at the time of the sale. But they are not compensated for any appointment, programming, repair, cleaning, service, adjustment over the course of the next 5 years while working with a patient or their hearing aid. If you are this upset over the cost of hearing aids, all that I can suggest is to write to your government officials. You must be active and voice your opinion when it comes to healthcare...namely Medicare. Medicare sets the pace for what all other insurance companies will cover. Remember that coverage is very different from a benefit. With the threat of Alzheimer's Disease, dementia and memory loss setting in due to untreated hearing loss it should be important to you to get your hearing tested. In most states, it's absolutely free of charge to have your hearing tested. Your insurance company does not even get billed. Be prepared for the results and do your research as to which company you will select to provide a solution for your hearing care needs. Remember that the cheapest price does not always mean they are the best company to work with.
Once attended a high school dance for teens. I put my hand on a large metal support in the gym - the thing was vibrating from the loud music blaring from the huge speakers on the stage. Anyone want to guess what kind of damage that causes to the eardrums of teens.
Also - a neighbors teen played music so loud that a neighbor several miles down the road could hear it - anyone want to guess what that did to the eardrums of his five year old brother - not to mention his?
Once - standing near a teen with earphones - I could hear the music as though it was coming out of tv speaker. And - that teen with loud music blaring in the confined space of this car?
Ever try to tell a smart A S S teen what that does to his/her eardrum? Shouldn't suprise anyone that the incidence of deafness in teens/adults has increased with several generations of idiots who ignore good advice from health professionals or even of adults. They always think the adult has some ulterior motive.
Tino57
Horse feathers - it is all about money - overpriced to say the least. And - many of those who test hearing and sell hearing aids fail to send patients to those who can diagnose what is causing their hearing loss - until it is often too late to save that persons hearing. They only want to sell expensive hearing aids.
My neighbor lost one of his expensive hearing aids - couldn't afford to replace it. I went on the internet and ordered him one for a few hundred dollars. He loves the thing - works better than that 2,000 plus one he lost.
FYI - a local parent is suing a hearing aid provider because they waited a year to inform her that she should take her child to a real professional - one that could actually diagnose the problem and maybe save the kid's hearing. Never see a hearing aid provider first - always see a medical doctor - get a referral to someone who can really help.
brickwall
If someone were to ask me what profession to persue, I would, no doubt, tell them -audiologist and tattoo removal. BIG future in both!
@Brickwall: did your friend see an audiologist or a dispenser? There is a HUGE difference between the two. I think Horse Feathers is talking about audiologists. My best friend is an audiologist and they are always lobbying to get insurance companies and the government to help pay for hearing aids.
@lokay5: my friend tells me that being an audiologist does not pay much. For what you pay for your education, you barely get any respect (financially and professionally).
"...being an audiologist does not pay much. For what you pay for your education, you barely get any respect (financially and professionally)."
Apparently, before he became a comedian, Rodney Dangerfield was an audiologist......?
Get those earphones out of your ears. All too many have the volume up so that others walking down the street hear the music.
Tinnitus absolutely SUCKS! I make sure my kids don't turn up their music and I tell them what I live with because I did.
Truthhurts402 - Actually the top 3 hearing aid manufacturers in the world are located in Germany and Denmark (Siemens, Phonak and Oticon).
Timeo57
Phonak?
Wasn't that a Johnny Carson bit?
Oh...wait...it was Karnak. Sorry.
PS- Seriously, I LOVE my Phonaks!