Hearing Aids: How They Help to Hearing Impaired Peoples?

For those who suffer from hearing loss, life is a series of missed opportunities. Even very close loved ones tend to switch off when they know they are not going to be heard. Hearing aids are primarily used in improving the hearing and speech comprehension of people who have hearing loss. This type of hearing loss results from damage to the small sensory cells of the inner ear, called hair cells. This type of hearing loss is called censorial hearing loss. The damage can occur due to aging, disease, injury from noise or certain medicines.

A hearing aid amplifies sound vibrations entering the ear. Surviving hair cells detect the larger vibrations and convert them into neural signals that are then transmitted to the brain. The greater the damage to the hair cells, the grater the hearing loss and the greater the amplification needed for comfortable hearing. The ability to provide amplification by the hearing aids is limited. In addition, if the inner ear is too damaged, even large vibrations cannot be converted to neural signals rendering the hearing aid ineffective.

There are different types of hearing aids to address different types of hearing loss. They differ in style and function.

Behind The Ear hearing aids consist of a hard plastic case worn behind the ear, and connected to a plastic ear mould that fits inside the outer ear. Sound travels from the hearing aid through the ear mould and into the ear. BTE hearing aids are used by people of all ages for mild to profound hearing loss.

In The Ear hearing aids fit completely inside the outer ear and are suitable for mild to severe hearing loss. Some ITE aids may have certain special features installed such as the telecoil. A telecoil is a small magnetic coil that allows sound to be received through the circuitry of the hearing aid rather than the microphone. This facilitates the hearing of telephonic conversations and public facilities installed with public loop systems. Induction loop systems can be found in cinemas, auditoriums, airports, schools and churches.

Canal aids fit the ear and are available in two styles. The In the Canal – ITC aid is designed to fit the ear canal of the patient. A completely in canal hearing aid CIC, is nearly hidden in the ear canal. Both types are used in mild to moderately severe hearing loss.

Hearing aids work differently depending on the technology used. The two main types are analogue and digital.

Analogue Aids convert sound waves to electrical signals, which are amplified. The aid is programmed by the manufacturer according to the directions of the Audiologist.

Digital aids convert sound waves into numerical codes, similar to the binary code of a computer before amplifying them. Digital circuitry allows the Audiologist more flexibility in adjusting the aid to a user’s need and to certain listening environments. These aids can also be programmed to focus on sounds coming from a certain direction.

Hearing aids help reintegrate the patient into society.

What You Need To Know About Hearing Aids

A hearing aid is a small programmable device which is worn in or behind the ear. It amplifies the sound so that a person with hearing loss can hear, communicate in daily activities and listen more effectively. Hearing aids are effective in both noisy and quiet situations. A hearing aid price list is available at the Center for hearing Aids website.

The hearing aid has three major parts- the amplifier, the speaker and the microphone. Sound is received through the microphone which converts sound waves to electrical signals and transmits them to the amplifier.  The amplifier increases the power of the signals and transmits them to the ear via a speaker.

There are three major types of hearing aids.

·         Digital hearing Aids

·         Programmable hearing Aids

·         Conventional hearing Aids

Digital hearing aids – these use state of the art technology. Digital hearing Aids are computer programmed fully automatic hearing aids that serve as comfortable “Assistive Listening Devices “for people with hearing Loss. These hearing aids are programmed as per the loss of the person, where each level of frequency can be adjusted at the most comfortable level. This is achieved by using pre defined channels or bands within a hearing aid.

The more the number of channels or bands , the more precise the  sound processing of the hearing aid. Hearing aids have become intelligent enough to tell the difference between noise and speech, thus making noise control and noise reduction more smooth and efficient for the patient.

Although it is often said that we can never match our god gifted sense of hearing, we are coming close with our digital hearing aids.

Programmable hearing Aids – these use more advanced technology than the conventional hearing aids. The aids are programmed by a computer allowing a better way to address a patients hearing needs. This allows a greater flexibility and fine tuning capability. These instruments basically use analogue conventional circuits which are operated by a computer.

Conventional hearing Aids - Conventional hearing aids use basic analogue technology to provide quality amplification to patients with hearing loss. The defining feature of these hearing aids is that they provide the same amount of amplification to all levels of sound intensity. Some patients may find too much or too little sound to comfortable reach the desired listening level for the particular hearing loss. As they are reasonably priced, conventional electronics represent the most basic type of amplification and are suitable where finances are a constraint.

Types of hearing aids

·   CIC completely in canal- these are the smallest type of hearing aids and are almost invisible in the ear.

·       ITC-In the canal – These are bigger than the CIC and fit deep into the ear canal.

·      ITE- In the Ear- Due to their larger size, these hearing aids can be used for a wider range of hearing losses

·   BTE- Behind the Ear- With the BTE aid the electronics are housed in a case that fits behind the ear.

The Hearing Aid Price List is a comprehensive list which compares different styles and models of hearing aids.