EUHA 2023 - Young, international, and focused on AI and OTC

While the friendly footfall around stalls in the huge space (12,730 m²) of the NürnbergMesse’s Hall 3A ticks step counters into tens of thousands, many visitors will be relaxing their frames to engage their minds, seated in lecture halls and focusing on a comprehensive programme that will not ignore the main issues in audiology today.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and over-the-counter (OTC) hearing aids are two essential areas that this year’s programme will explore. Starkey is just one major manufacturer whose devices have been harnessing the power of AI for a decade, and the US firm’s leading representatives in tech and audiology, respectively – Achin Bhowmik and Dave Fabry – will present on Enhancing human auditory function with artificial intelligence on Wednesday, October 18, 2023 between 15:30 and 16:00. The Starkey gurus’ brief talk will centre specifically on a new sound processing system that mimics the cortical computation through a power-efficient hardware-accelerated DNN architecture embedded within the processor chip of a hearing aid device. They will present results obtained for speech enhancement in various listening situations.

One hour later, engineer Dominic Schmidt from Vienna will explore future possibilities and paths in ear impressions and ear scans. Ear impression meets artificial intelligence – a glimpse into the future will cover, for example, how combining smartphones and artificial intelligence could create 3D data of the pinna and ear canal, ultimately without silicone or expensive ear scanners. Importantly, the presenter will discuss how audiologists can continue to be specialists in all aspects of customised products in the ear, and which product categories the emerging AI technologies will enable.

The related area of Big Data also comes under discussion in a lecture on Friday October 20 2023 (09:30–10:00) by Sonova’s Director of Global Audiology, Angela Pelosi: Big data on fitting and usage trends across different client populations.

OTC and its effects under discussion

Switzerland’s Christoph Schwob will get the ball rolling on topics where the impact of OTC is going to be felt. His Knowledge Symposium on Wednesday, October 18 between 11:30 and 13:15 will ask Specialist shops will always be needed – or will hearing aids soon only be available online? In answering certain questions – Do we have to struggle against online sales? Can we prevent them? Is our industry well positioned to cope with this trend? – Schwob will venture a prediction that not everything is going to change. Find out in Nuremberg what he thinks will remain the same.

Aware that the OTC process has emerged slower than anticipated – and so far with limited success – Thomas A. Powers of Oxford, New Jersey (USA), and Kate Carr of Washington, District of Columbia (USA), will be reviewing a key issue: Over-the-counter (OTC) devices: One year later. One focus by these US experts that should interest audiologists from the NHS-dominated audiology sphere of the UK is their examination of the potential interest from countries outside the US in OTC and whether the OTC segment will be added to private markets and/or government funded health programmes for hearing care.

The Future is for the young, and Friday is their day at EUHA

Future Friday, on October 20 offers free admission to trainees and students. A special programme of events will include guided tours of the Industry Exhibition in an effort to get young people interested in the audiology business. Future Friday Keynote lectures will be given in the afternoon 14:00 to 16.00, following a full morning programme of lectures.

EUHA presentations this year will cover an immense variety of subjects, including occlusion-free earmoulds, assistive listening technology in large venues, Auracast Bluetooth, hearing aid design, fitting for a range of hearing disorders, signal procession strategies, loudness validation, Audible Contrast Threshold, GN’s Check My Fit, agility hearing aid audiology, patient behaviour, and a roundtable discussion on Thursday, October19: Changing hearing aid acoustics: The European perspective on the future of better hearing and intelligibility.

There will also be a round of tutorials, covering implantable hearing systems, measurement methods, marketing changes, and stress reduction.

Stress will no doubt be reduced for many visitors at EUHA’s ever-present social get-togethers.

Watch out for any late changes to the full programme of the 67th International EUHA Congress; just check online here.

Source: EUHA