When it comes to choosing a hearing aid, there are many factors you need to consider, including the style, electronics, battery life, and other features. The first step in picking the right hearing aid is determining what is wrong with your hearing.
Federal regulations prohibit anyone from selling hearing aids unless the buyer has first been evaluated by a medical doctor. If you are over 18 years old, you can waive the requirement to have an exam, however, you will not get the most benefit out of a hearing aid unless it is custom fit to your specific hearing needs. Your type of hearing loss will determine whether a hearing aid will be effective for you and which kind of aid will help you the most.
Hearing loss has two basic causes:
• Conductive hearing loss - This type of hearing loss happens when something goes wrong with the physical structures that carry sound into your ear. The problem could be with the ear canal, the eardrum, or the bones that connect to the ear drum.
• Sensorinural hearing loss – This type of hearing loss occurs when there is damage to the inner ear (cochlea) or to the nerve that carries sound from the ear to the brain.
Hearing aids come in a variety of styles based on the size and shape of the design:
• Completely in the Canal – Molded to fit inside your ear canal. Least visible design and least likely to pick up noise from the wind because your ear shelters the hearing aid. This is also easiest to use with the telephone. Because of the small size, there are no volume controls or directional microphones, and battery life is shorter. Completely in the canal aids can help with mild to moderate hearing loss in adults.
• In the Canal – Molded to fit part of the way into the ear canal. Somewhat visible in the ear, this is easy to use with the telephone. Some custom features such as volume control are available, but the small size makes the controls difficult to use. In the canal aids may not fit well in small ears. They can help improve mild to moderate hearing loss in adults.
• Half-shell – Molded to fill the lower portion of the bowl-shaped portion of the outer ear. More visible due to the larger size, they also has room for additional features such as directional microphones and volume control. Half-shell aids are appropriate for mild to moderately severe hearing loss.
• In-the-ear or full shell - Custom formed to fit your ear and fill most of the bowl shaped portion of your outer ear. This style is more visible, and may pick up more wind noise. The larger size makes these easier to insert and allows for larger batteries that last longer. Full-shell aids can help people with mild to severe hearing loss.
• Behind-the-ear – This is the largest and most visible style. The aid hooks over the top of the ear with the electronics resting behind your ear. A small tube carries the sound to a molded earpiece that fits inside your ear canal. Behind-the-ear aids provide more amplification than other styles and are appropriate for most types of hearing loss and for people of all ages.
• Open fit – this is a variation of the behind-the-ear style that leaves the ear canal open rather than blocking it was a molded earpiece. Sound travels from the small receiver behind the ear through a small tube or wire to a tiny speaker in the ear canal. This style works best for mild to moderate high-frequency hearing loss where low frequency hearing is near normal.
All hearing aids work by making sounds louder so you can hear them better. With improvements in digital technology, most hearing aids are now manufactured with digital electronics that can amplify specific frequencies of sound based on your specific hearing loss and the volume of other sounds around you.
Hearing aids come in a wide range of prices and can be purchased from a variety of sources. Be sure to get a referral to a reputable audiologist who can make sure you get the hearing aid that will best fit your needs. Ask about a trial period and get the terms in writing to give yourself time to get used to the hearing aid. And make sure any hearing aid you buy includes a warranty that covers both parts and labor for a specified length of time.
Sources:
American Academy of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery
Mayo Clinic
National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders