That’s DR. Michelle Batson

Posted in General on December 21, 2009

Weekends that change your life...

As many of you have known, I've been working on completing my doctorate in Audiology. You see, when I joined this profession a master's degree was the highest non-research based degree available to us. There have always been doctors of Audiology--but only PhDs: doctors who typically are found in university positions.

The AuD. is a clinical doctorate, one meant for those who will be in clinical practice evaluating and treating auditory and

RadioFrequency Devices for Skin Treatments

Posted in Cosmetic Services on December 14, 2009

RFD (RadioFrequency Devices) use radiofrequency as the energy source to safely heat the deeper layers of the skin in order to stimulate existing collagen to promote new collagen growth. 

NWFace offers  Aluma and Thermage treatments - both use RF technology.  There are some differences in how the devices are engineered - Aluma using "bipolar RF" and Thermage using "monopolar capactive RF" (refer to any handy physicist for a more detailed explanation). 

More important for

Humans Navigating Like Bats, Aural Rehabilitation Take Two

Posted in Hearing on December 8, 2009

I just read a fascinating article about a team of Spanish researchers who are investigating the ability of humans to develop echolocation skills like bats and dolphins by recognizing the echoes of oral clicks.  The application will be to aid navigation for vision-impaired persons.  They found humans are able to learn to identify that something is in their path within the first two weeks with only two hours a day spent learning.  Another two weeks they could tell the difference

Holiday Hearing, ‘Tis the Season to Listen

Posted in Hearing on December 8, 2009

By far this is the busiest time of the year for Audiology.  So many families coming and going it is easiest to see when we miss conversations that count.  It is also the season where we evaluate our selves for those so called "New Year's Resolutions" and many find that understanding others is becoming a challenge. 

Our office has offered trials of hearing aids without cost to patients for many years.  I am happy to sit with any of you wondering where you are in your needs,

Snoring - a social nuance or a life threatening problem?

Posted in General on December 2, 2009

Having spent over 25 years analyzing and trying to find the "best" solutions for treating snoring and more serious sleep disorders particularly sleep apnea, a number of interesting observations come to light.

The most common problem is that of snoring that may in many cased be associated with varying degrees of sleep apnea. There is a very wide spectrum of problems ranging from negligible to life threatening.

The key concept in dealing with the problem is to start with the