On Disabilities

This Braille reader connects to a smartphone.

Health & Safety

For The Blind, Connected Devices Create A Novel Way To Read

8:43pm January 03, 2014

by NPR Staff

Braille hasn't changed much in the nearly 200 years it's been around. But with tablets, smartphones and e-readers, how we read things has. Judy Dixon of the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped talks with NPR about how technology has changed Braille — and whether it can endure.

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Does a glass or two of wine during pregnancy really increase the child's health risks? Epigenetics may help scientists figure that out.

How A Pregnant Woman's Choices Could Shape A Child's Health

8:58am September 24, 2013

by Jon Hamilton

Pregnant women are told not to drink, smoke or stress out. But it hasn't been clear how those choices may affect a fetus. By studying how genes are turned on and off, scientists say they are getting closer to understanding what experiences in the womb really affect a child's health.

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Lauren Henderson and her service dog, Phoebe, in Los Angeles. Henderson says she's seeing more dogs in vests that don't appear to be legitimate service dogs.

Four-Legged Impostors Give Service Dog Owners Pause

7:54am September 11, 2013

by Lisa Napoli

People who lack special needs but simply want to keep their pets with them all the time can easily find fake "service animal" certifications on the Web. But those phony credentials can create problems for people with disabilities who legitimately need trained service dogs.

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Members of the Bay Area Association of Disabled Sailors sail every weekend near San Francisco's Pier 40. The all-volunteer group serves people with a range of physical, developmental and mental disabilities.

Sailors With Disabilities Find Freedom On The Water

5:21pm September 10, 2013

by Emily Green

Every week, a group of people with a range of disabilities hits San Francisco Bay. They sail using specially rigged boats; one woman controls her boat using only her chin. Sailing offers a sense of independence for the participants, some of whom are confined to wheelchairs while on land.

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Speech-language pathologists Jill Tullman (left) and Mendi Carroll (right) work with Bryce Vernon at Talking with Technology Camp in Empire, Colo., on July 25.

Obamacare: People With Disabilities Face Complex Choices

7:59am August 15, 2013

by Eric Whitney

The Affordable Care Act sets up categories of essential health benefits that insurance plans must cover. Some categories, such as maternity care and drug abuse treatment, are straightforward. But "habilitative services" — including treatments like physical and speech therapy — are much more subjective.

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Margaret Battin's husband, Brooke Hopkins, was left quadriplegic after he collided with an oncoming bicycle while cycling down a hill in Salt Lake City.

Health & Safety

For Bioethicist With Ailing Spouse, End-Of-Life Issues Hit Home

4:14pm July 25, 2013

In 2008, a cycling accident left bioethicist Margaret Battin's husband quadriplegic and dependent on life support technology. The accident forced Battin, a right-to-die advocate, to reflect on the positions she's taken in the past and decide whether she still believes in them.

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Sound World Solution's hearing device lets a user customize its settings using a Bluetooth connection and a smartphone.

To Make Hearing Aids Affordable, Firm Turns On Bluetooth

10:38am July 02, 2013

by John Ydstie

Traditional hearing aids can be too expensive for many people. But a new type that uses Bluetooth technology costs only about $300. The company that makes the new devices aims to reach millions of people around the world who need hearing aids but have trouble paying for them.

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The Human Voice May Not Spark Pleasure In Children With Autism

11:31am June 18, 2013

by Jon Hamilton

Scientists and parents have long been baffled by the fact that children with autism often don't pay attention to human voices. Researchers say that may be because speech doesn't activate a reward system in the brain for those children the way it does for typical children.

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Health & Safety

The Promise In Unraveling The Mysteries Of Rare Diseases

3:13pm June 10, 2013

As a child, Jeannie Peeper was diagnosed with fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva, an extremely rare disease that causes a second skeleton to grow inside the body. Peeper and science writer Carl Zimmer discuss the efforts of a small group to fund research to battle the disease.

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Health & Safety

With Advances In Prenatal Testing, Difficult Choices Arise

3:08pm May 30, 2013

Technological developments in prenatal testing and screening methods have given women more information about the genetic status of their fetuses. Increased access to information can leave mothers and their partners with difficult choices about whether to continue or terminate a pregnancy.

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