Have you noticed that most every major manufacturer now offers some type of frequency lowering technology?
Linear frequency compression, nonlinear frequency compression, frequency transposition, spectral envelope warping...it’s complicated. Although these products are deceptively easy to fit - with a few clicks of the mouse you can get the manufacturer’s default first fit setting - how can you tell if your patient is benefiting, or maybe more importantly, that you’re not making things worse?
Fortunately for us, Contributing Editor Dr. Gus Mueller saw a need to sort through the evidence and invited Dr. Josh Alexander from Purdue University (who also has a patent pending in this area) for a 20Q discussion entitled Highs and Lows of Frequency Lowering Amplification. I cannot describe my delight as an editor when I opened this article from my inbox - as soon as I started reading it, I knew it would be an amazing resource for the profession.
And, the conversation will continue with none other than Dr. Susan Scollie from Western University, who will join Dr. Mueller and our Question Man next month to discuss more about the clinical applications for frequency lowering. Dr. Mueller has promised me that he will then sit down with Drs. Scollie and Alexander together to flesh out the finer points and ensure we have covered all you need to know about this intriguing technology. You’ll be able to find all of these articles at www.audiologyonline.com/20Q so stay tuned. I hope you are as excited as I am about this support from leading experts to help us harness this technology to benefit both the children and adults we see in our practices. Many thanks to Gus, Josh and Susan for these contributions.
Thank You to Our Peer Reviewers
While at AudiologyNOW! I ran into a colleague who had just completed a peer review for an AudiologyOnline article. It was nice to have the opportunity to shake his hand in person and express my sincere appreciation for his time and expertise. He is a vestibular expert who runs a very busy private practice. It reminded me - yet again - of what an important role these colleagues play in the profession. Whether it’s for AudiologyOnline or any other journal, these unsung heroes critically evaluate the information we put forward - and we all benefit as a result. We can’t offer them anything more than a thank you (lest we give the appearance of attempting to influence their evaluation) but what they provide in return is priceless. If you are interested in participating in a peer review, please contact me at editor@audiologyonline.com and THANK YOU to the many of you who have done so.
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Thank you for reading. Please feel free to drop me a line anytime at editor@audiologyonline.com.
Best regards,
Carolyn Smaka, AuD
Editor-in-Chief
