Hearing aids tailored to lifestyle, as well as degree of loss

Help for those with hearing loss is coming through loud and clear thanks to advances in hearing aids. Yet to get the most from a hearing aid, it’s important to make sure it is properly fitted both for your hearing and for your lifestyle.

“There are so many different options in hearing aids,” explains Lori Aronovici, an audiologist at UW Medical Center’s Otolaryngology Clinic. “It’s important to work with an audiologist to find a balance between your hearing difficulties and listening needs, so you will get the hearing aid that works best for you.”

Hearing aids are designed to help amplify sounds. In the past, hearing aids only provided a “louder” mix of sound. Yet today’s hearing aids can be adjusted to amplify soft sounds and keep loud sounds comfortable.

“We want soft sounds like speech to be amplified, but we don’t want loud noises like sirens or horns to be unbearably loud,” notes Aronovici. “Hearing aids can’t restore normal hearing, but they help make it easier for people to hear sounds again.”

Before being fitted for a hearing aid, a person should undergo a standard evaluation by an audiologist to determine the type and degree of hearing loss. In some cases, hearing loss may be related to a medical condition, such as an ear infection causing fluid to build up in the middle ear space or a bony overgrowth in the middle ear space, and will need to be treated accordingly.

If a hearing loss cannot be treated medically or surgically, a person will then be referred for a hearing aid evaluation. Aronovici explains that through additional testing, an audiologist will be able to generate a target prescription.

There are three types of hearing aids: conventional, programmable and digital. Conventional hearing aids are designed for people with quiet lifestyles. Made of mechanical and electrical parts, they can be adjusted by an audiologist using a screwdriver.

Programmable hearing aids contain a computer chip that holds the settings in memory. They can be reprogrammed by an audiologist with a computer. These devices are designed for people with active lifestyles who need more complex sound control in order to hear in noisy situations. For greater flexibility, programmable hearing aids can be adjusted to have different listening programs. This will allow users to change the response of the hearing aid when their environment changes (such as from a home to a busy office ).

Digital hearing aids are the most advanced models. Digitization means that incoming sounds are converted into a stream of numbers that are analyzed by a computer chip inside the hearing aid. Digital sound has minimal distortion and is most appropriate when fit for better understanding of speech. People who lead active lifestyles and want the state-of-the-art technology and flexibility may prefer a digital model.

Hearing aids also come in a variety of sizes, from those that fit behind the ear or in the ear, to smaller devices that fit completely into the ear canal.

“A person who lives a quiet lifestyle will need a hearing aid much different from someone who is more active,” Aronovici explains. “I think it’s important for every hearing impaired person to invest in the right hearing aids, so that the devices don’t end up sitting in a drawer.”

After being fitted with a hearing aid, the patient should see an audiologist, who will perform validation testing to make sure it works as it should. This will include both asking for a patient’s input and conducting objective testing. This step is very important, Aronovici says, adding that patients should be sure such testing is included.

“In some cases, adjustments may need to be made,” Aronovici says. “And later, as hearing abilities change, hearing aids should be reprogrammed accordingly.”

Julie Rathbun