TYPES OF HEARING AIDS
Hearing aids have come a long way from the proverbial ear trumpet. You now have choices that range from completely invisible in the ear hearing aids to the conventional over the ear hearing devices. The number of options is almost overwhelming, which is why we’re providing you an overview here.
Ultimately which type of hearing aid you buy depends on your hearing needs and your lifestyle. The best way to select the right one of the hundreds of hearing aids available today is to get guidance from your local hearing experts.
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Early treatment is the most effective treatment.
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THE NEWEST HEARING AIDS
It’s no secret why digital hearing aids account for most hearing aids sold today. The quality of sound is amazing. Once you try a pair, you’ll see why they’re often the best choice.
Why wait? You don’t have to live with hearing loss.
Why wait? You don’t have to live with hearing loss.
Digital Hearing Aid Features
- Dual microphones allow you to hear better in noisy situations. Some can even identify the source of the noise and reduce it!
- Open technology that keeps the ear canal unobstructed eliminates that “talking in a barrel” effect.
- Feedback cancellation does just that — it cancels feedback before you hear it as an annoying whistle.
- Hands-free technology automatically adjusts to your listening environment, whether you are on the phone, in a crowd or in a windy area.
- Your digital hearing aid can be programmed with a computer to meet your individualized needs.
- Wireless technology allows you to hear your cell phone, television and home phone in stereo, directly through your hearing aids!
Digital hearing aids can act on soft sounds in one way and on loud sounds in a completely different fashion. The more advanced the digital chip the more bands that it will possess. Some digital hearing aids have the capability to reduce some environmental noises such as motors running or dishes clanging.
There are so many options available to you! There are four basic technology levels: Economy, Basic, Advanced and Best. Each level offers digital hearing solutions based on your level of hearing loss, lifestyle and budget.
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What You Need to Know about Conventional (Analog) Hearing Aids
Conventional analog hearing aids are basically amplifiers that feature manual volume controls and manual fine-tuning. These hearing aids are primarily beneficial for listening in easy, relatively quiet situations, such as one-on-one conversation and listening to the television, because all of the sounds are typically amplified in exactly the same way. This technology provides limited flexibility in meeting individual needs.
Why Wireless Hearing Aids Are So Popular
Paired with a handheld device like your smartphone, this type of hearing aid connects you directly and wirelessly to the sound sources you need to hear, such as your TV.
This technology picks up the sound you wish to hear while dampening other distracting noises. No more cranking up the volume on the television; no more screaming into your cell phone and no more missing out on the things you enjoy most.
Imagine you’re watching television from your favorite armchair. Your hearing aid is working fine until–the kids sit down in front of you and start a conversation, the clattering of dishes from the kitchen sink fills the house, the neighbors basset hound begins to bark and your neighborhood’s annual firework extravaganza comes a day early. With wireless hearing aid technology you can cut through the noise clutter and just tune into the TV.
Each person is different, in a good way, which means the hearing aids you buy need to be selected, fitted and programmed to your individual needs. Our practice can do that, and help you live better with the right hearing aid.
Why wait? You don’t have to live with hearing loss.
Why wait? You don’t have to live with hearing loss.
WHICH TYPE OF HEARING AID IS RIGHT FOR YOU?
Questions?
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Below we review the primary styles along with our recommendations.
Behind-the-Ear (BTE) Hearing Aids
Recommended for: people of all ages and degrees of hearing loss.
BTE hearing aids are designed to give your ears an incredible boost in power. The plastic casing fits directly behind the top of your ear where it’s easily hidden by your hair.
The custom earmold is shaped to match the exact contours of your ear canal. It comes in a variety of colors to decrease visibility even more. The BTE hearing aid has a wide variety of programming features and options that may be customized to meet your hearing needs.
Open Fit Hearing Aids
Recommended for: mild to moderate hearing loss.
This style is a take on the BTE hearing aid with a thin tube. It doesn’t plug the ear and it’s not too visible. It keeps the ear canal open so that low-frequency sounds can enter your ears naturally while amplifying low-frequency sounds.
In-the-Ear (ITE) Hearing Aids
Recommended for: people with disabilities or dexterity challenges who have mild to severe hearing loss.
ITE hearing aids are true custom-designed hearing aids. The entire hearing aid is molded to match the contours of your outer ear. The hard plastic casing forms to the exact shape of your ear making to fit snugly. There’s also an ITE style available that only fills the lower part. ITEs do a great job of amplifying sound.
You can add features to an ITE hearing aid to make it hassle free including telecoil (a feature that makes it easier to hear when you’re talking on the phone), ear to ear communication and automatic programming. ITE hearing aids comes in a variety of colors to match your skin tone including pink, beige, cocoa and brown.
Receiver-in-the-Ear (RIC) Hearing Aids
Recommended for: mild to severe hearing loss.
Our RIC or RITE hearing aids are perfect for active adults. The directional microphone technology makes it easier to understand conversations in crowded environments by detecting and amplifying the target speech signal and decreasing the background noise.
Visibility isn’t a problem. You can attend business meetings, parties and other social events without anyone even knowing you’re wearing hearing aids. You can hide the small hard plastic casing on this device behind your ear or underneath your hair.
The ultra-thin wire picks up sound and carries it directly into a speaker that fits invisibly into the ear canal or in the ear. The RIC hearing aid can come with programming features including bluetooth compatibility so you can connect your RIC hearing aids to your phone, your iPad or even your car.
In-the-Canal (IC) Hearing Aids
Recommended for: mild to moderately severe hearing loss.
Our ITC and CIC hearing aids are our smallest, most invisible custom hearing aid products. The ITC hard plastic casing is tiny, ranging anywhere between 1 to 3 cm long. CICs are designed to fit even deeper into the ear canal resulting in a really invisible fit closer to the eardrum. CICs come with standard features and may have wireless capability.
Extended Wear Hearing Aids
Think invisible and almost maintenance free! You can wear these in-the-canal hearing aids 24/7 for months at a time, without having to worry about charging or replacing the batteries. The close proximity of the hearing aids to the eardrum ensures optimal sound while reducing distortion and background noise.
Many of our devices come with special programming features including noise management programs, automatic adjustments, ear to ear communication, function controls, directional microphones, wireless bluetooth controls, music programs and telecoil. These features help make communication much easier. The telecoil feature is also useful in public facilities with induction loop systems. Consult with our hearing professionals to determine which features are best for you!
Why wait? You don’t have to live with hearing loss.
Why wait? You don’t have to live with hearing loss.
ARE ASSISTIVE LISTENING DEVICES THE SOLUTION?
- Assistive listening devices (ALDs) help amplify the sounds you want to hear, especially where there’s a lot of background noise. ALDs can be used with a hearing aid or cochlear implant to help a wearer hear certain sounds better.
- Augmentative and alternative communication devices (AAC) help people with communication disorders to express themselves. These devices can range from a simple picture board to a computer program that synthesizes speech from text.
- Alerting devices connect to a doorbell, telephone, or alarm that emits a loud sound or blinking light to let someone with hearing loss know that an event is taking place.
Assistive listening devices typically use a microphone to capture an audio source near its origin and broadcast it wirelessly to over an FM (Frequency Modulation) transmission, IR (Infra Red) transmission, IL (Induction Loop) transmission or other transmission method.
FM systems use radio signals to transmit amplified sounds up to 300 feet. That makes them useful in many public places such as classrooms, where the instructor wears a small microphone connected to a transmitter and the student listens via a worn receiver, which is tuned to a specific frequency or channel.
Infrared systems use infrared light to transmit sound. Unlike induction loop or FM systems, the infrared systems signal cannot pass through walls, making it particularly useful in courtrooms, where confidential information is often discussed, and in buildings where competing signals can be a problem, such as classrooms or movie theaters. However, infrared systems cannot be used in environments with too many competing light sources, such as outdoors or in strongly lit rooms.
Personal amplifiers are useful in places where the above systems are unavailable or when watching TV, being outdoors or traveling in a car. About the size of a cell phone, these devices increase sound levels and reduce background noise for a listener. Some have directional microphones that can be angled toward a speaker or other source of sound. As with other ALDs, the amplified sound can be picked up by a receiver that the listener is wearing, either as a headset or as earbuds.
Don't wait!
Early treatment is the most effective treatment.
Talk to the experts. Call or text us today.