Software Vault: The Diamond Collection/The Diamond Collection (Software Vault)(Digital Impact).ISO/cdr16/veda5.zip/SUMMER94.TXT

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FROM THE
ANNUAL REPORT

By Charlotte Shupert, Ph.D.
President of the VEDA Board

Another year has come and gone, and I
am once again pleased to report that it
has been another year of growth and
accomplishment for VEDA. During the
past year, VEDA has been listed in
more than 100 publications as a resource
for people with vestibular disorders.
These publications, ranging from the
local dailies of small towns across the
United States to the New York Times
and American Health magazine, have
enabled us to reach thousands of people
who were not previously aware of
VEDA. As a result, we mailed
information to 15,000 more people, and
our membership has increased from
2,600 to 4,200, up 62 percent. [See graph
on page 9.]

This astonishing growth would never
have been possible without the dedicated
service of the people who have worked
and continue to work for VEDA. On
behalf of the organization and the board
of directors I would like to express
heartfelt thanks for years of service to
Susan Engel, Joanne Huston, and Mary
Ann Watson, who are retiring this year.
These board members have been with
VEDA from the beginning. . . .

Increasing membership numbers are one
measure of growth, but there are many
others. VEDA acquired both an 800
number and a TTY this year to enable
more people to reach us and to better
serve the hearing-impaired. VEDA
moved to new office space to
accommodate our increased work load
and improve the working conditions for
our staff. Some of our computer
equipment collapsed under the load and
was replaced by newer, faster equipment.
We added a new document, "Benign
Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo," by
Timothy Hain, M.D., and added audio
tapes of Balancing Act and Stories and
Strategies. We revised our articles of
incorporation to limit the liability of
board members, and added fire and theft
insurance for our offices and equipment.

It has been a busy and rewarding year.
The intensity of the work load has been
more than outweighed by the satisfaction
of knowing that we have reached
thousands of new people with the
information they need to understand and
deal with their disorders. I look forward
to the coming year and to the challenges
it will bring, knowing that VEDA will
continue to grow and improve in its
ability to serve people with vestibular
disorders.






















Even Keel, the newsletter of the
Houston, Tex., support group doesn't
take things too seriously. Although it
includes information about meeting
schedules, phone lists, and calls for
articles, its motto is "If what we print fits,
that's news." Under the heading,
"Mermaids and Other Questionable
Phenomena," the editors promise to print
"any suggestions that members have
found useful in coping with vestibular
symptoms, however unorthodox,
unseemly, incredible, or downright
unbelievable." The first edition reported
"no casualties" at the May meeting, the
group's maiden voyage.

Nutrition experts spoke to the Middle
Tennessee (Nashville) support group in
May. An audiologist was scheduled was
scheduled for July to discuss "Vestibular
Anatomy and Physiology; Diagnostic
Testing." The group's newsletter featured
an article, "Unsung Heroes, Our
Partners," as well as a summary of the
nutrition experts' talk.

The June 1994 edition of The Evergreen
News, an acoustic neuroma support
group in Eatonville, Wash., lists the
following things named by members as
good to be found in the bad experience
of acoustic neuromas: closeness to
others, kindness to the less fortunate,
gratitude for little things, closeness to
God, new relationships, more patience,
new meaning to life.

A cartoon in the newsletter of the St.
Louis Meniere's group consists of
drawings of clinics for hearing, vision,
headache, and vertigo. The vertigo clinic
is upside down. In addition, the group
leader, Diane Riesenmy reported that
her study of the anxiety levels of 14
people with Meniere's disease and the
people who take care of them when they
are sick indicated that the caretakers
were mildly anxious and the patients
moderately anxious when the patients
were symptomatic. "This means that
while caring for a Meniere's patient may
be difficult, Meniere's patients exhibit an
even greater level of anxiety," she said.

Most doctors continue to use medication
as a first approach rather than a last
approach to treatment of vestibular
disorders, according to a physical
therapist who spoke to 21 members of
the Philadelphia, Pa., support group in
June on vestibular rehabilitation. The
preference for medication may be
related to "low awareness" on the part of
physicians of the need for vestibular
rehabilitation as well as "the difficulty of
finding individuals interested and skilled
in supervising these [vestibular
rehabilitation] programs," she said.

Lola Ligaya B. Suzuki, R.N., leader of
the newly formed Hawaii Balance and
Dizziness Disorders Group, in Honolulu,
"would like to share the legal
implications of persons who may have, as
I do, BPPV and endolymph hydrops, or
other vestibular disorders in general. . .
." Ms. Suzuki has experience as an
attorney as well as a nurse. She can be
reached at 1589 Ala Lani St., Honolulu,
HI 96819-1444.

Nearly 150 members and friends of the
Tinnitus Support Group of Lancaster
County (Lancaster, Pa.) attended a
presentation on tinnitus by Dr. Stefan P.
Kruszewski in May.

The Marlbourough, Conn., group
recently held its first meeting and made
plans to exchange support and
information and to invite a psychologist
and a physical therapist to speak.

The summer newsletter of the Meniere's
group of Sacramento, Cal., featured a
summary of a talk by a pharmacist on
drug therapy for Meniere's. Another
article explained "How to Survive in a
Restaurant." On the lighter side, the
newsletter described middle age as "that
difficult period between adolescence and
retirement when you have to take care
of yourself."

Meetings of the Meniere's group of
Royal Oak, Mich., this spring included
talks by health professionals on "Natural
Ways to Improve Your Health," "Non-
Surgical Treatment of Vertigo," and
"Bio-Feedback and Relaxation
Techniques." The group also held its first
"open meeting" since 1989, during which
each member spoke for two minutes or
so.





RECENT
TECHNICAL
ARTICLES

[Dr. Susan Engel is on sabbatical from
her "News and Reviews" column. This
column, a substitute, is based on abstracts
of articles in medical and scientific
journals found in the National Library of
Medicine.]

SURGERY FOR NON-
MENIERE'S VERTIGO  J.E.
Benecke discussed surgery he performed
on 14 patients suffering from vertigo
resulting from chronic vestibular
neuronitis, delayed onset vertigo after
sensorineural hearing loss, or
labyrinthine injury after temporal bone
fracture. He reported either total relief
of symptoms or marked improvement in
all 14 at the time of a one-year follow-up
exam. However, he said, surgeons must
exercise extreme caution in selecting
non-Meniere's patients for surgery and
that good results depend on proper
selection, accurate diagnosis, and the
exclusion of central disease. See
Benecke, J.E., "Surgery for non-
Meniere's Vertigo," Acta Otolaryngol
Suppl (Stockh) 1994; 513:37-9.

BRANDT-DAROFF EXERCISES
Those familiar with the Brandt-Daroff
exercises for BPPV may want to check
out "Therapy for Benign Paroxysmal
Positioning Vertigo, Revisited" by
Brandt, T.; Steddin, S., and Daroff, R.B.
It was published in the May 1994 issue
of Neurology; 44(5): 796-800.



ANTI-VERTIGO DRUGS  H.
Timmerman, in Acta Otolaryngol Suppl
(Stockh) 1994;
513: 28-32,
discussed drugs
used to treat
vertigo as well as
possibilities for
new therapeutic
agents. See
"Pharamoco-
therapy of
Vertigo: Any
News to Be Expected?"

BIBLIOGRAPHY  The Journal of
Vestibular Research included a vestibular
bibliography in its Spring 1994 issue;
4(1): I-IV.

VESTIBULAR REHABILITATION
The abstract of an article by A.M. Eber
said the use of physical therapy in the
treatment of vertigo was based on the
plasticity and adaptive qualities of the
vestibular apparatus. Whether physical
therapy is used as a treatment and what
kind is used depend on the location of
the lesions. These treatments give lasting
effects and avoid prolonged treatment
with anti-vertigo drugs which, by
impairing the development of
compensation, often lead to persisting
functional disorders, the abstract said.
The full text of this article is in French
(Rev Prat, 1994 Feb. 1; 44(3): 367-71.

VERTIGO  In Current Opinions in
Neurology, 1994 Feb; 7(1): 88-92,  M.
Collard and Y. Chevalier reviewed the
occurrence, diagnosis, and treatment of
vertigo, "one of the most frequent
reasons for consultation in daily medical
practice. Recent studies show that
vertigo involves considerable social costs
before being managed efficiently, as it is
often incorrectly diagnosed," the abstract
said.

MORE VESTIBULAR
REHABILITATION  A Japanese team
recently compared the efficacy of
vestibular training (VT) with that of
anti-vertigo drugs for BPPV. They found
that "improvement rates of positional
nystagmus and vertigo were higher in the
two groups treated by VT with and
without medication than the
improvement rate in the medication-
alone group. In the groups treated by
VT, the effects were not influenced by
time since onset of disease or by patient
age. It is therefore assumed that VT can
be used as a first-choice treatment in
patients with benign paroxysmal
positional vertigo, even in long-term
cases or older patients." See Fujino, A.;
Tokumasu, K.; Yosio, S., et al.,
"Vestibular Training for Benign
Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo, Its
Efficacy in Comparison with Anti-
Vertigo Drugs," Arch Otolaryngol Head
Neck Surg, 1994 May; 120(5): 497-504.


VESTIBULAR NEURITIS
Vestibular neuronitis is an acute disorder
of the vestibular apparatus which
manifests by sudden vertigo, without
apparent cause, and without auditory or
neurological symptoms, said C. Conraux
in a recent article (Rev Prat 1994 Feb 1;
44(3): 324-7). The prognosis is favorable
"although disorders of moderate intensity
may rather often persist, in the form of
positional vertigo, sometimes
paroxysmal, or disorders of equilibrium
on abrupt movement." The complete
article, which discusses origins,
diagnoses, and treatments, is in French.


LETTERS

T'AI CHI  As a new member of
VEDA, I would like to share my
experience with using T'ai Chi Chuan to
help alleviate the chronic vertigo,
fatigue, disequilibrium and unsteadiness
continually present since December
1990, when I was diagnosed with post-
viral labyrinthitis.

In 1988 I fulfilled a cherished dream of
learning T'ai Chi. Though initially I had
very little confidence I could learn it, I
proved to be a talented and diligent
student to the point where I was
teaching classes myself by September
1990. On Dec. 2, 1990, I was suddenly
rendered helpless and hospitalized with a
virus in the inner ear.

I felt my T'ai Chi world of teaching,
learning, and practicing with others had
slipped away forever. A couple of
months later, when I was able to move
around slowly, my love of T'ai Chi won



















out, and I determined I would not give it
up.

I began practicing at home as well and
as often as I was able. I soon noticed
that my fumbling practice was improving
my balance and coordination. The slow
movements did not increase my
dizziness. Ability to maintain balance is
dependent on information received by
the brain from (1) the eyes, (2) the inner
ears, and (3) muscles and joints of the
feet, legs, trunk, and spine. T'ai Chi is
well-suited to stimulating the sending of
this information in category (3).

Not a physically demanding form of
exercise, it helps improve memory,
posture, coordination, and concentration.
Called "meditation in motion," it teaches
you to relax. When the movements are
synchronized with deep breathing, the
internal energy called "chi" is released,
bringing balance to body, mind, and
spirit.

Practicing T'ai Chi has never made my
symptoms worse. On the contrary, often
my balance improves as I practice.

T'ai Chi is a discipline that requires
patience, perseverance, hard work,
practice, persistence, and determination
to learn. T'ai Chi taught me all of these.
Applying them to learning to cope with
my disabilities this past 3 1/2 years has
helped me immeasurably. I would
recommend T'ai Chi to anyone whose
vestibular disorder and general physical
condition indicates to your doctor that it
is appropriate. . . .

Edith Gregory - age 67
4043 Stevens Drive
Prince George, B.C., V2K 1E2
Canada
HEAD MANIPULATION  I first
came in contact with VEDA after we
discovered that my then 4-year-old son
was hearing-impaired in one ear. The
information and resources your
organization provided were very helpful
to us.

More recently, I started having recurring
attacks of vertigo and fullness on the left
side of my face. After seeing numerous
doctors, including ear, nose, and throat
specialists, neurologists, and others, and
after undergoing an MRI, ENG testing,
and similar procedures, I was finally
diagnosed . . . as having BPPV. . . .
After suffering months of intermittent
dizziness and discomfort, a simple non-
invasive, two-minute head manipulation
immediately brought complete relief to
both the dizziness and the feeling of
fullness. Further, whenever I feel the
beginning of an attack, I perform a
series of simple exercises at home which
were taught to me by [my doctor]. So
far, I have been free of a vertigo attack
for over two months and feel like I may
finally have control over my life again. . .

Debby Zurzolo
1016 Point View Street
Los Angeles, CA 90035


VEDA TIDBITS

ELECTIONS  The VEDA board
became more geographically distributed
than ever as a result of elections this
spring. VEDA members elected five new
board members to two-year terms
starting June 8. The five are Dennis I.
Bojrab M.D., professor of otolaryngology
at the University of Michigan and Wayne
State University; Mary Koch, a clinical
social worker from Sonoma, California;
Michele I. Royston, L.P.N., program
coordinator of a balance disorders center
in Virginia Beach, Va.; Steven Soden, a
writer from Santa Barbara, Calif., and
Susan Zalewa Tupper, R.N., personnel
coordinator for nurse recruitment at
Hartford Hospital in East Hartford,
Conn. Current board members re-elected
for another two-year term were Cari
Bennett, Dotti Gray, and Charlotte
Shupert. Other current board members
have terms ending in 1995. Eight of 18
board members now live in states other
than Oregon. Voters also approved
changes in VEDA's articles of
incorporation intended to reduce the
elected board's legal liability.

NOTE FROM THE VEDA BOARD
If you found something in this newsletter
especially helpful, please share it with a
friend. Send the friend's address to us,
and we'll be glad to send your friend a
copy.

NEW BOARD OFFICERS  VEDA
board members recently elected new
officers for 1994-95 as follows: President,
Charlotte Shupert; vice president Carrie
Vogt; secretary Cari Bennett; treasurer
Ted Norton. The board will have three
subcommittees this year: board
development, led by Carrie Vogt;
education, led by Charlotte Shupert, and
outreach, led by Mike Smith.

OLD NEWSLETTERS If you don't
keep your old VEDA newsletters, please
recycle them by placing them in libraries,
churches, or other places where others
might find them useful.




NEWS BRIEFS

MERELY AN EARTHQUAKE
Unexplained dizziness threw Maggie for
a loop recently during an episode of
Northern Exposure, a popular television
soap opera set in small-town Alaska.
Maggie, a light-plane pilot and a regular
on the show, experienced a sudden
vertigo attack while flying with Joel, the
town doctor. Via the Internet, Joel
searched a medical data base at Johns
Hopkins and diagnosed Maggie's
problem as labyrinthitis. The show ended
with an earthquake, which Maggie
interpreted as an inner ear attack. When
Joel told her the truth, Maggie laughed
and said, "Oh, it's only an earthquake."

DIZZINESS SEMINAR  Neil T.
Shepard, Ph.D.; David S. Zee, M.D., and
Joel A. Goebel, M.D., will be guests of
honor at the sixth annual
Interdisciplinary Seminar on Diagnostic
and Rehabilitative Aspects of Dizziness
and Balance Disorders, scheduled Dec. 7
through 11 in Denver. Dr. Shepard, one
of VEDA's medical and scientific
advisors, is director of the balance
disorders lab at the University of
Michigan Medical Center, in Ann Arbor.
Dr. Zee, also one of VEDA's medical
and scientific advisors, is director of the
ocular motor vestibular testing
laboratory at the Johns Hopkins
University Medical School, in Baltimore.
Dr. Goebel is director of the vestibular
lab at Washington University School of
Medicine, in St. Louis. Meant for health
professionals, the seminar has been
organized by the Prosper Meniere
Society. More information about the
seminar may be had from the meeting
coordinators, Apryl Salz or Jane Wells,
c/o I. Kaufman Arenberg, M.D., 300 E.
Hampden #401, Englewood, CO 80110;
phone [phone] or [phone];
FAX [phone].

GUIDE BOOK FOR LAWYERS
The National Head Injury Foundation
(NHIF) has published a 600-page book
edited by Charles N. Simkins, Analysis,
Understanding and Presentation of Cases
Involving Traumatic Brain Injury, which
might be of help to VEDA members or
their lawyers. The book includes many
articles such as "Mechanism of
Traumatic Brain Injury Resulting from
Rear End Car Crashes" and "Special
Considerations in Identifying and
Litigating the 'Mild' Head Injury Case."
Mr. Simkins, a Michigan attorney active
in educating other attorneys about
traumatic brain injury, is a member of
VEDA. The book, which costs about
$200, is available from NHIF, 1776
Massachusetts Ave. NW, Suite 100,
Dept. LB, Washington, DC 20036; phone
[phone].


NEW DOCUMENT

VEDA has added a new document, "R-5:
Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo,"
by Timothy C. Hain, M.D. to its
collection. Much of the illustrated six-
page document explains various
treatments for BPPV, including the
liberatory maneuver, the Brandt-Daroff
exercises, and other options. R-5 is
available to members for 50 cents to
partly offset the cost of printing, postage,
and handling.





THANK YOU

We thank all of the following for their
contributions to VEDA through July 5:

Associates ($100 to $499): Jane Macpherson,
Oregon; Charles L. McCain, Florida; F. Owen Black M.D.,
Oregon; Micromedical Technologies, Illinois; Linda
Holdstock, Massachusetts; Sidney N. Busis M.D.,
Pennsylvania; Leath Cahoon, Utah; Jeanne Huston,
California; Cindy Goral, California; Lester Pearson, Michigan.

Contributors ($10 to $99): ALABAMA: Judith
Rodgers. ARIZONA: Sully Hightower, Dr. A.L. Mansure,
Norma Raya, Linda Goeglein. ARKANSAS: Barbara
Lienhart, Oscar Yaeger. CALIFORNIA: Lois McCarty, Lillian
Sorensen, Glenn Taylor, Arturita Tolentino, Freda Baptista,
Eugenia Culbertson, Lee Law, Tony Passalaqua, Rosalind
Cunningham, Stephen Turrini, Claire Saffian, Eleanor
Rubard, Dolores Frye, Reta Tyree, Mignon Naylor, Leo
Alvarez, R. Ted Meyer, Patricia Milward, Jean Houchens,
Jean McClure, Whitney Crum, Joan Kraus, Rose Lutes, Julie
Takeda, Vee Robinson, Margie Baxter.

COLORADO: Lois Jensen, Don McDermott, Alan Uffman,
Kim Saltus Johnston D.V.M., Charles Maxfield, George Knox,
W.E. Brown, Janice Gilland. CONNECTICUT: Dr. Gerald
Labriola, Ronnie Nielsen, Yasmine Cronin, Jill Durall, Ann
Hagelstein, Nancy Watters, Donna Reid.

DELAWARE: Marian King. FLORIDA: Andrew Hirshik,
Lillian Archer, Patricia Kennedy, Rita Shaffer, Patti
Thompson, Geraldine Dodge, Edwin Martin, Kathryn
Karpowicz, Dorothy Parr, Perry Behrens, Carol Goldman.
GEORGIA: Reba Smithline, Mim Pfledderer, Gilbert Taylor,
Angela Cerrito, Ellen Dennis. HAWAII: Lola Ligaya B.
Suzuki RN, Roy Shimizu, Jill Boettner. ILLINOIS: Ted
Graham, Laurie Medina, Nels Kans, Mary Allen, Donna
Novack, Elaine Lipinsky, Teresa Campana, Lou Tomes, Betty
Meyers, Donald Fawcett, Maura Supancic, Jill Niksich.

INDIANA: Shirley Redifer, Cecilia Weber, Robbin Myers,
Wendy Wierzbowski. IOWA: Mary Inman, Lyle Van Zele.
KANSAS: Betty Gearhart, Sandra Vaughn, John Peterson.

LOUISIANA: Annemarie Maher, Janet Jacobsen, Phyllis
Chatman, Gina Bush. MAINE: Cornelia Yaw, Dennis
Robillard, Laurene Beckwith. MARYLAND: Nancy Cannon,
Russell Meussner, Ermene Lilly, Brenda Hall, Chata Raye
Smith, Earl Marsh, Mary De Angelo.

MASSACHUSETTS: Charlyn Heidenreich, Jennifer
Carpenter, Michelle Lyons, Eunice Good, Barbara Pasquale,
Candace Clark, Kathy Richburg, Eleanor Stichweh, Gillian
Lieberman, Walter Kovaleski, Shirley Burton, Susan Bayard,
Paul Pitman, Rose Mandill, C.N. Broghamer, Mary-Ann
Coyne, Michael Impastato, Mary Pratt, Sandra Pappas, Joni
Seager, Betty Commerford, Betty Latner, Natalie Tompkins,
Jennifer Porter, Paul Pitman, M. Fatima Martins.

MICHIGAN: Steven Eisenberg, Richard Cook, Cheryl
Krysiak, Doreen Wise-Friedenberg, Kathy Handyside, Verna
Chambers, Mary Pawlak, Carol Wagenmaker. MINNESOTA:
Angela Kaiser. MISSOURI: Michael Steele. MONTANA:
John Parker. NEW HAMPSHIRE: Henry Ehrmann. NEW
JERSEY: Mary Gleason, Ruth Palace, Cathy Mele, James
Meenan, Dawn Taormina, Gladys Rude, Robert Robertson
M.D., Marvin Greenberg, Barbara Strongin, Ann Kohoot,
Harry Bott, Diannea McClelland, Elizabeth Goebel, Brian
Packard, Charles Rauschert.

NEW MEXICO: Wendy Babcock. NEW YORK: John Reed,
Francine Hayward, Dr. Rose Benderly, Phyllis Lindsey, Edwin
Haines, Daniel Silverstein, Blanche Byrd, Sheila Bernard, Sara
Morse, Jane Schlick, David Bernstein, Doranne Hans, Saverio
DeFrancisci, Mary Hines MSPT, Daniel Riccio, Barton
Sholod, Bohdan Wenglowskyj, Jean Vincent, Lorna Hoffman,
Wendy Hollowell, Theodore Papamarcos, Elsie Hynna,
George Mahoney, Roxanne Slow, Ben Orland, Roscha Folger,
Libby Nelson, Nancy Ladd, Hedi Levenback, Fanny Acuna,
Phyllis Sherman.

NORTH CAROLINA: Margy Lee Elspass, Betty Conway,
Sally McMillan, Alice Dyke, Linda Marker, Edith Tallent,
Ingeborg Bush. OHIO: Lisa Billings, Elaine Thomas, Gail &
Dan Hamilton, Dorothy Rice, Timothy Miller, Joanne
Sprowls, Toni Gendler, Thomas Hogle. OKLAHOMA:
Patrick Alexander.

OREGON: Charlotte & Ray Johnson, Norma Raya, Ida
Barbeau, Mary Ann Watson, Anna Maye Brown, Christine
Edwards, Mary Lee Harris. PENNSYLVANIA: Muriel
Jackson, Joan Cavanauga, Marie Sefter, John Salyer, Doris
Africa, Gwen Dittmar, RR Pottash MD, Deborah Simon,
Susan Taylor, Grace Najarian, Harry Gerhart, Robert Hays.

PUERTO RICO: Daphne Hernandez, Benito Martinez,
Robert Saylor, Patria Echevarria, Antonio Montalvo
Hernandez. RHODE ISLAND: H. Reed, Barbara Bicknell,
Geralyn Dougherty, Jeanne White. SOUTH CAROLINA:
Simone Fontaine, Shirley Zahrn, Sawyer Cooler. SOUTH
DAKOTA: Dolores Shanks.

TENNESSEE: Mary Ann Neumann, Betty Ann Keil, Judy
Balton. TEXAS: Melissa Lane, Gail Sachson, Janis Hogan,
Helen Gray, Anna Sellmyer, Mr. & Mrs. Earl Landis, Gail
Sachson, Carter Beghtol. VIRGINIA: Paul Ferraro, Jean
McNair, Richard Queisser, Margaret Paul, Linda Allen,
Anthony Denice, Robert Hay, Donna Mayer, Pam Kiser,
Patricia Wexelblat, Rebecca Stone.

WASHINGTON: Judy Barnes, Norita Nelson, Pam Roy,
Helen Bruchak, Annemarie Warren, Judi Enright, Marjorie
Moeller, Linda Paros, Gisela Shoda, Lois Haddon.

WISCONSIN: Alma Ellefson, Russell Oldenburg, June
Margenau, Martha Recknagel, Sandra Carlson, Mary
Angermeyer, Claudia Rotroff, Patricia Twohig.

AUSTRALIA: Sheila Sanders. CANADA: Donald Giles, John
Urquhart, Donna Davis, Susan McNally, Phyllis Purdy, D.J.
Ireland, M.D.; Judy Kelly-Nobel, Eileen Baron, Dora
Lawrence.


NEWS BRIEFS

TINNITUS RESEARCH  Singer
Barbara Streisand has donated $25,000
to the American Tinnitus Association
(ATA). A news release said Ms.
Streisand, who has tinnitus, a constant
ringing or other noise in the ears or
head, made the contribution in response
to ATA's appeal for research funding in
connection with its $5 million research
endowment campaign. "I hear noises all
the time," she said. "It's pretty horrible. I
long for the silence." According to the
ATA, nearly 20 percent of the American
population experiences tinnitus, with 10
to 20 million Americans having tinnitus
in chronic form. Ms. Striesand's gift is
one of several large contributions to start
the ATA campaign.

























DEAFNESS RESEARCH  Proceeds
from a recent dinner honoring Louise
Fletcher, the actress, and Dr. Oliver
Sacks, the neurologist and author, will
benefit The Deafness Research
Foundation (DRF). Ms. Fletcher, whose
parents were both deaf, received a
surprise award honoring her involvement
as a DRF board member and her
support of the deaf community, a news
release said. Dr. Sacks was honored for
his book, Seeing Voices: A Journey into
the World of the Deaf, which explores
deafness and "the amazing beauty of sign
language." Since 1958, the DRF has been
devoted to providing seed funding for
research into deafness and other serious
ear disorders.