The National Hearing Conservation Association extends its sincere thanks to all who contributed to the success of the 2026 NHCA Annual Conference and the celebration of NHCA’s 50th Anniversary. We are grateful to our attendees, sponsors, vendors, speakers, award recipients, volunteers, and partners whose engagement and support helped mark this important milestone in NHCA’s history.

This anniversary year provides an opportunity to reflect on five decades of leadership in hearing conservation while reaffirming our commitment to advancing evidence-based prevention strategies across occupational, military, and public health settings.

Future NHCA E-News editions will provide a comprehensive conference wrap-up, including highlights from the 50th Anniversary celebration, award recipients, and photo galleries, allowing our full membership to share in the outcomes and moments from this milestone event.

Please join us in congratulating and welcoming the newest members of the NHCA Board of Directors. Their terms begin following the NHCA Annual Conference in February:

• President-Elect: Andy Merkley, AuD, CCC-A, CPS/A (3-year term: President-Elect → President → Immediate Past President)
• Director of Membership: Frank Wartinger, AuD (2-year term)
• Director of Education: Melanie Hayes, DNP, APRN, FNP-C (2-year term)
• Director of Marketing/PR: Stephanie Karch, AuD, PhD, CCC-A (2-year term)
• Member-at-Large: John Johnson, COHC (2-year term)

1. Auditory Symptoms Among Musicians: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.McCray LR, Ripp AT, Nguyen SA, Pelic JC, Labadie RF, Meyer TA.Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2026 Feb;174(2):305-316. doi: 10.1002/ohn.70094. Epub 2025 Dec 31.PMID: 41474194 Free PMC article. Review.
2. Leveraging Monaural Exposures to Reveal Early Effects of Noise: Evidence from Police Radio Ear-Piece Use.Guest H, Elliott P, van Tongeren M, Laycock J, Thorley-Lawson S, Stone MA, Loughran MT, Plack CJ.Trends Hear. 2026 Jan-Dec;30:23312165251410988. doi: 10.1177/23312165251410988. Epub 2026 Jan 30.PMID: 41618116 Free PMC article.
3. Establishment of a human inner ear model reveals that gentamicin C2b is substantially less ototoxic than clinical gentamicin.Jeong M, Mohri H, Han D, Sakagami M, Stankovic KM.Biomed Pharmacother. 2026 Jan;194:118915. doi: 10.1016/j.biopha.2025.118915. Epub 2026 Jan 6.PMID: 41496330. Free article.
4. Large-scale music events can cause subclinical hearing damage.De Poortere N, Van Ransbeeck W, Keshishzadeh S, Kok M, Keppler H, Dhooge I, Verhulst S.Sci Rep. 2026 Jan 5;16(1):676. doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-30382-x.PMID: 41491080 Free PMC article.
5. Bridging the gap: mechanisms and novel translational strategies to prevent cisplatin-induced ototoxicity.Bai J, Wang W, Fu Z, Yang J, Guo Y, Guan G.Hear Res. 2026 Jan;469:109487. doi: 10.1016/j.heares.2025.109487. Epub 2025 Nov 24.PMID: 41308564 Free article. Review.
6. Racial and ethnic inequities to noise pollution from transportation- and work-related sources in the United States.Shkembi A, Patel K, Smith LM, Meier HCS, Neitzel RL.J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol. 2026 Jan;36(1):211-220. doi: 10.1038/s41370-025-00795-x. Epub 2025 Jul 17.PMID: 40676166 Free PMC article.
7. Modeling passenger comfort in turboprop aircraft using objective measures.Song YW, Reichherzer AS, Yao X, Vledder G, Herbig B, Bellmann M, Norrefeldt V, Vink P, Mansfield N.Work. 2026 Jan;83(1):54-63. doi: 10.3233/WOR-230700. Epub 2027 Aug 1.PMID: 39093102 Free PMC article.
8.  Impaired Tone-in-Noise Detection in Individuals Who Report Temporary Hearing Symptoms After Noise Exposure. Brungart DS, Ellis GM, Shub DE, Davidson AJ.Ear Hear. 2026 Feb 2. doi: 10.1097/AUD.0000000000001789. Online ahead of print.PMID: 41622525

If you have come across interesting articles that might be a good fit for the Sound Postcard, send them along for us to feature!

Speaking, publishing, researching, performing, hearing? NHCA would love to hear about exciting changes and achievements in your professional and personal endeavors. 

Who is NHCA?

Our Vision: To prevent hearing loss and other auditory disorders due to noise and secondary environmental factors in all sectors of society.

Our Mission: NHCA provides leadership, expertise, and education on hearing loss prevention strategies and services to the broader professional community and empowers and supports members through networking and advocacy.