 |
- DRF works to make a lifetime of hearing health possible for all people through quality research and education.
- DRF is the leading national source of private funding for basic and clinical research in hearing and balance science.
- Since its founding in 1958, DRF has awarded almost 1,900 grants, totaling over $23 million.
Pieces of the Puzzle
"Scientific research is an active, diligent, and systematic process of inquiry, by its very nature, research means probing the unknown. Each bit of knowledge supported by DRF’s grants program contributes a piece or answer to the puzzle-like mystery of hearing loss."
- Armand D'Amato, Former Chairman, DRF Board of Directors
DRF-funded research has led to dramatic innovations in hearing and balance science, such as:
- Cochlear Implants
- Universal Newborn Hearing Screening
- Surgical Therapy for Otosclerosis
- Hair Cell Regeneration
- Auditory Research
Quick Facts
Hearing loss is the most common sensory disorder in the United States affecting at least 31.5 million Americans and their families. These staggering numbers illustrate how hearing loss impacts an individual’s quality of life:
- One in ten Americans has a hearing loss that affects their ability to understand speech.
- Over one million children in the United States are challenged with hearing loss and more than 12,000 children born in the United States each year have a significant hearing loss. Undetected, hearing loss is likely to interfere with a child’s speech, language and communication with others.
- Fifteen percent (approximately ten million) of baby-boomers (ages 45-64) have hearing loss.
- According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), one third of Americans over age 60 and 40-50 percent of Americans age 75 and older have hearing loss. Researchers have documented strong links between hearing loss in the elderly and social isolation, depression, low self-esteem and difficulty functioning.
DRF programs work to make a lifetime of hearing health possible for all people through quality research and education.
Research Grants
DRF’s principal program is providing research grants to emerging, innovative researchers in the field of hearing and balance science. A goal of the DRF grants program is to fill critical research funding gaps by providing qualified investigators, researchers, and institutions with annual research grants in the amount of $25,000 per grantee.
The DRF grant program employs a “venture capital” approach, providing seed money for research that may lead to future funding from other sources and contribute to the advancement of the field of hearing and balance science.
Clinical Research Conferences
DRF facilitates clinical research conferences that bring together some of the brightest and most promising researchers in the field. For example, DRF’s 3rd Clinical Research Conference was held March 9-12, 2006,
in Potomac, Maryland. In addition to educational sessions held by keynote speakers, the conference was a stimulating mix of physicians and clinical investigators in the Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery and Communicative Disorders field. Their collaboration and intensive interaction bridged the gap between basic training in clinical research and developing contemporary clinical studies.
The impact of this conference is evident as one attendee recently shared with DRF, "Following the conference,
I put together an application and have received 2 years of support. I used my conference folder while preparing the application and definitely could not have done it with without DRF."
- Helen Cullington, MS, PhD Student, University of California, Irvine
Hearing Health Magazine
Hearing Health magazine is a publication of Deafness Research Foundation. It serves as DRF’s primary channel for public outreach and education to a national audience—including consumers with hearing and balance disorders as well as the professionals who serve them, such as otolaryngologists, audiologists, researchers and manufacturers.
Through Hearing Health magazine, DRF serves as a source of quality information and provides the tools and resources to help people seek treatment for and manage hearing loss. Each issue features relevant and timely information on the latest research, articles written by leading authorities in the field, news about the latest technology, and human interest stories about those living with hearing loss.
Centurions
For more than 45 years, the DRF Centurion Members have been champions of DRF supporting our work to fund promising research in the field of hearing and balance science. As highly respected members of the medical community, Centurions serve as valuable resources within DRF’s network. Our members include expert otolaryngologists, otologists, neurotologists, audiologists, researchers and other individuals in the field of hearing and balance science. |
|
