Hearing aids are small electronic devices that you wear behind or in our ear. They are designed so person suffering from hearing loss can listen, communicate, and participate more fully in daily activities by making sounds louder. With the use of a hearing aid, folks can hear optimally in both quiet and noisy situations.
There are three basic parts to a hearing aid; an amplifier, a microphone, and speaker. The microphone receives sound, the sound waves converts to electrical signals and sends them to an amplifier where power of the signals increases and a speaker sends them to the ear. We at ENT Specialists would like to elaborate some on the fundamentals regarding hearing aids.
People who have hearing loss that results from damage to the small sensory cells in the inner ear, known as hair cells can have their hearing and speech comprehension improved with hearing aids. Disease, aging, or injury from noise or certain medicines can cause the damage that creates the type of hearing loss is known as c sensorineural hearing loss. As the sound vibrations enter the ear, the hearing aid magnifies it. The larger vibrations are detected by surviving hair cells and then converted to neural signals that are passed to the brain. The more severe the hearing loss is due from the greater the damage of the person’s hair cells, which will require a more intense hearing aid amplification to compensate.
There are different style hearing aids, behind-the ear, in-the-ear, and in-the-canal.
Behind-the-ear Hearing Aid: BTE hearing aids is a hard plastic case worn behind the ear that connects to a plastic ear mold fitted inside the outer ear. The case behind the ear is where all electronic parts are housed. From the hearing aid sound travels through the ear mold and into the ear. For those with mild to profound hearing loss and of all ages, BTE aids are utilized. An open-fit hearing aid is a new type of BTE aid. With only a narrow tube inserted into the ear canal, small, open-fit aids fit behind the ear completely, enabling the canal to remain open. For people who experience a buildup of earwax, open-fit hearing aids may be a better choice. Additionally, some people also prefer this hear aid because from their perception of their voice does not sound “plugged up.”
In-the-ear Hearing Aid: ITE hearing aids are designed to fit completely inside the outer ear. Those with mild to severe hearing loss use this style hearing aid. A hard plastic case holds the electronic components. Some ITE aids are features with telecoil, which is a small magnetic coil that a small magnetic coil as opposed to a microphone. ITE aids equipped with telecoil are especially ideal for people to hear in public facilities that have installed special sound systems known as induction loop systems. Generally, ITE are only worn by adults because children would need to replace their ITE too frequently to accommodate their ear’s growth rate.
Hearing Aid Canal: Hearing aids that fit directly into the ear canal are available in 2 different varieties; in-the-canal hearing aids where the ITS is customized to fit in the size and shape of the wearer’s ear canal and completely-in-canal hearing aid where the CIC is nearly hidden in the ear canal. For mild to moderately severe hearing loss both types are useful. They are small, making them difficult for the person to adjust and remove. They are not recommended for kids and those with profound hearing loss. Because of their size, they cannot have added features such as the telecoil as well and the power and volume is limited.
With the assortment of hearing aids available you can find which hearing better suits your lifestyle and comfort. Come see the professionals of ENT Specialists today to discuss your options.
