Abstract: Methods of treating a subject for hearing loss or auditory impairment or damage, such as blast-induced hearing damage, comprising administering to the subject in need of such treatment an effective quantity of a glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor (GLP-1R) agonist. The treatment may be given after exposure to a blast, loud noise, or other hearing loss-inducing traumatic event, or may be prophylactic, i.e., given prior to exposure to a blast or loud noise.

Abstract: Ossicular prostheses, and methods for producing such, are disclosed for treatment of middle ear damage caused by a malady of the middle ear such as cholesteatoma. The ossicular prostheses comprises a strut component attached to a disc via a rigid or flexible connecting joint. The strut is attachable to a head or footplate of a subject's stapes. The disc is attachable to the subject's existing tympanic membrane, or, alternatively, to an artificial tympanic membrane graft. In some embodiments, a scaffold is used to support the ossicular prosthesis and the tympanic membrane graft.

Abstract: A finite element model of an ear stored on a computer readable medium having logic representing a three-dimensional geometric model of the ear; logic for meshing individual anatomical structures of the ear accounting for whether the anatomical structures include at least one of air, liquid material and solid material; logic for assigning material properties for each anatomical structure based on at least one physical property of each anatomical structure; logic for assigning boundary conditions for some of the anatomical structures indicative of interaction between such anatomical structures; and logic for employing acoustic-structural coupled analysis to the anatomical structures of the ear to generate data indicative of the acoustic effect on mechanical vibration transmission in the ear. Various embodiments of “one-chamber” and “two-chamber” analyses and models are described.

Abstract: A totally implantable hearing system having a sound processing device, a coil assembly, and a magnet assembly. The magnet assembly is implanted in the middle ear of a user and is in contact with at least a portion of an ossicle of the middle ear. The sound processing device receives and converts sound into an electrical signal. The coil assembly is preferably implanted within the bony canal wall adjacent the outer ear canal of the user such that at least a portion of the coil assembly extends into the middle ear space of the user.