Hearing Aid Comparisons
Gradual hearing loss is part of the aging process (presbycusis) and it is a common condition.
It’s estimated that one-quarter of Americans between 65 and 75 suffer some degree of hearing loss and around three-quarters of seniors over 75 have some degree of hearing loss. Wear and tear on your ears from noise and ambient sounds contribute by damaging the inner ear and help hearing loss. Heredity and chronic exposure to noise and loud sounds are the principal factors in hearing loss.
Hearing loss is not reversible, but you can compensate the lowered efficiency of your ears by using a hearing aid.
A hearing aid is an electro-acoustic body-worn device that amplifies and changes the sounds it receives helping better communication and aiding the user in orienting and perceiving the surroundings. This apparatus is typically worn inside or behind the ear. The hearing aid receives the sound through a microphone where the sound is transformed into electric signals. This signal goes through an amplifier that augments the volume of the signal and then it sends this stronger sound signal into the ear through a speaker.
Types of Hearing Aids
- ITE In The Ear Hearing Aids: they fit completely in the external ear bowl (called the concha), and are used for low to severe hearing loss, the box, that contains the hearing aid parts are made of hard plastic. The ITE Hearing Aids can accommodate extra mechanisms, like the telephone coil, a small magnetic coil in the aids that improves sound transmission during phone calls. ITE’s can be damaged by ear wax and their small size can cause problems in adjustment and comfort. Children normally do not use this type of hearing aid as the case size needs to be adjusted with their growth, modern silicone type models that help to avoid expensive replacements.
- BTE Behind the Ear Hearing Aids: These are used behind the ear (pinna) and are connected via a tube (air conduction) or electrically through a wire the a small speaker in a custom-made plastic earmold that fits into the external ear (concha). The hearing aid parts are the ones located behind the ear. The BTE aids are used by people of all ages with mild to severe hearing loss. BTE hearing aids that are badly adjusted can cause feedback, causing a high pitch whistle.
- ITC In the canal hearing aids fit in the ear canal and are available in two sizes. It’s custom designed so it adjusts to the size and shape of the ear canal and is used in cases of mild to moderately severe hearing loss.
- CIC Completely in the canal hearing aids are hidden within the ear canal and are used in cases of mild to severe hearing loss. Due to their small size, CIC hearing aids can be difficult to adjust and extract and do not have space for additional accessories, such as the phone coil. These hearing aids can also be damaged by ear wax and liquids within the ear, not recommended normally for children.
- Pocket hearing aids can be carried around in your pocket, these are used when people have a severe hearing loss. The hearing aid is attached to a belt or a bag and is connected to the ear with a cable. Due to their large size, they offer the largest amount of processing options, for TV use, for example. They are generally used only when the patient can’t use any other model.
- BAHA Bone Anchored Hearing Aids: this is a auditory prosthetic that can be implanted surgically. This hearing aid uses the skull as the sound transmitter to the inner ear of the patient. For people that have conductive hearing loss (the middle ear or auditory canal impede sound transmission) this method bypasses it.
Please review the information we provide and we hope you’ll find useful information in your search for the best hearing aid for you.
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