What are Hearing Aids?

Hearing aids are small electronic devices that are made to be worn in or behind your ear. These devices can amplify the sound, so a person who suffers from hearing loss could live a normal life, including normal communication and daily activities.The hearing aids could be really useful, as they can make the sound louder in both quiet and nosy environments. 

All hearing aids are composed of three elements:

• The microphone – its purpose is to catch the sound waves and to transform them into electrical signals;
• The amplifier – it is used to boost the intensity of the electrical signals;
• The speaker – receives the amplified electrical signal and sends it to the brain.

When do you need Hearing Aids?

To determine if you need to use hearing aids or not, you have to discuss the matter with your General Practitioner, who should send you to both an otolaryngologist and an audiologist. While the audiologist will be able to measure and determine the type and severity of the hearing loss, your otolaryngologist will identify and treat the actual cause of your hearing loss.

Although many people, mostly the elderly, report loss of hearing, it is considered that only one out of five persons who truly need such devices use them.

Types of Hearing Aids

Hearing aids could be of various types, in order to satisfy the needs of everyone.

Behind-the-ear (BTE) hearing aids are composed of a hard case of plastic that must be worn behind the ear, which is linked to a plastic earmold that suits the outer ear. All the electronic components are found in the plastic cover that is placed behind the ear. The microphone, which is located in the plastic cover, captures the sound and sends it to the speaker via the earmold. 

Behind-the-ear can be worn by anybody. Therefore, these hearing aids are great for kids and for seniors. Moreover, these could be great hearing aids for severe hearing loss, as well.

Another type of behind-the-ear hearing aid is the so-called open-fit hearing aid. These small and open-fit devices suit exclusively behind the ear. These hearing aids are connected to narrow tubes that are placed within the ear canal. Using these devices, the ear canal remains completely opened. The open-fit hearing aids are a great choice among those who encounter buildups of earwax. Earwax and other substances that are found in the ear canal do not affect in any way the hearing aid’s reliability. The open-fit hearing aid has gained a lot of popularity, as the users’ perception of their voice does not seem to be “plugged up”.

In-the-ear hearing aids are different. They suit completely inside the outer ear. They are useful in case of mild to even severe cases of hearing loss. In-the-ear hearing aids consist of a hard plastic case that contains all the electrical parts. The upper-end in-the-ear hearing aids come in with a telecoil. This electronic component is very useful as it could improve the user’s hearing while listening on the telephone. Also, the telecoil makes it easy to hear all the information that is presented through public facilities’ sound systems, which are referred to as loop systems. Therefore, the user will be able to hear the information that is presented to him through speakers, such as those from the subway, airport, school, church, or more. This type of hearing aid is not suitable for young children, as they require it to be changed as soon as the ear grows a little.

The canal hearing aids are made to fit exactly the user’s ear. There are two types of canal hearing aids. One of them is the in-the-canal hearing aid, which is created to match the size and form of the ear. The other type is called the completely-in-canal hearing aid. This one is considered to be an almost invisible hearing aid, as it is almost completely hidden inside the ear’s canal. Both types of canal hearing aids could be used from mild to moderately severe hearing loss cases.

Which Hearing Aids are the best?

If you are looking for hearing aids, you have more criteria that you use, to filter the hearing aids devices that should work for you. You are probably looking firstly at hearing aids brands. Secondly, depending on hearing aids’ prices you start to select the few hearing aids that are cheap, comfortable, and reliable.

Each of the hearing aids manufacturers produces different devices, to provide products in all price ranges.

The best overall hearing aids are the Phonak Audeo Paradise. These hearing aids provide Bluetooth connectivity. They also have incorporated sensors of motion and they are very user-friendly.

Kirkland Signature 10 offers the best hearing aids prices for quality. These hearing aids are sold in pairs.

Widex Moment is considered to be among the most suitable hearing aids for tinnitus. Its system makes the aggravating ringing or buzzing specific to tinnitus way less noticeable.

Signia Styletto X has the best hearing aid smartphone app. It makes the hearing aids very user-friendly, as they can be easily controlled by a touch on the smartphone. They also offer you control over the direction of the sound, meaning that you can filter in only the sounds you are interested in.

Starkey Livio Custom Edge AI is great if you are looking for a customized hearing aid. It can be recharged and it can monitor your activity. Moreover, it can also send health alerts to your caregiver.

Oticon More is the only available hearing aid that uses artificial intelligence to increase the understanding of speech. These hearing aids are trying to reproduce the modalities in which the brain knows how to distinguish different voices.

Phonak Virto M-Titanium IIC is said to be the best invisible hearing aid. This hearing aid will provide maximum discretion to its user.

Batteries for Hearing Aids

The existence of rechargeable hearing aids is limited, and users might consider them, at times, bothersome. Therefore, going into a shop to buy hearing aids’ batteries will continue for some time.

Before buying batteries for your hearing aids, consult the patient information leaflet and make sure that you are buying compatible batteries. The size of batteries could differ from one model to another.

Hearing Aids with rechargeable batteries

These are some of the hearing aids with rechargeable batteries that are available on the market, and information about the cycles of their batteries.

Widex Moment takes 4 hours to be fully charged and it could be used for 20 hours. Also, it takes 30 minutes to charge the battery, enough for 4 hours of usage.

Beltone Imagine needs 3 hours to charge fully and it could be used for up to 30 hours. It can also be charged for 30 minutes, to use it for 8 hours.

Starkey Livio AI requires less than 3 hours to charge at maximum and it can be used for 24 hours. It needs only 7 minutes to charge to be used for 3.5 hours.

Signia Styletto X needs 4 hours to charge fully and 19 hours to drain the battery. If you charge it for 30 minutes, you will get 5 hours of usage.

Oticon More requires 3 hours to fully charge and its battery can last up to 24 hours. It also needs 30 minutes of charging, to get 6 hours of usage.

The Phonak Marvel hearing aid needs 3 hours to charge fully and could work for 24 hours. It also requires only 30 minutes of charging to be used for as much as 6 hours.

Phonak Audeo requires only 2 hours to fully charge and the battery could go on for 24 hours. It also needs only 30 minutes of charging to be used for 6 hours.

Are Hearing Aids waterproof?

The hearing aids are water-resistant. This is often misinterpreted and confused with waterproof, which is not the same. The hearing aids have limited protection when in contact with water. If you seek to improve the condition of your hearing aids, you can use dedicated covers that have the role of increasing hearing aids’ protection from water.

At this very moment, there is just one hearing aid model which is waterproof, respectively Aquaris from Siemens.

Hearing Aids with Bluetooth

Modern hearing aids are able to improve the sound that the users receive in all environments. 

Nowadays, hearing aids could be wirelessly connected to all types of sound providers, such as cellphones, tablets, TVs, or music players. 

If you suffer from hearing loss and you are using modern hearing aids, you have to know that the sound of all of your devices could be transmitted via Bluetooth to the hearing aids. You no longer need to turn up the television or to put the phone on speaker while communicating, as the sound could be transmitted directly to your ear. Moreover, the microphone of the hearing aids could be used as your microphone during a telephone conversation, thanks to Bluetooth connection availability.

Although great, Bluetooth connectivity does not come as standard on modern hearing aids. There are just a few brands and models that offer this great option.

Can you wear headphones with Hearing Aids?  Or can you transform your Hearing Aids into earbuds?

As all electronic devices are continuously developing, the headphones have been diversified into multiple classes.

Though Bluetooth connection is not available for all models from the hearing aids range, some types of headphones might be compatible for use.

The types of headphones are:

• Earbuds – earbuds cannot work for hearing aids, as they are very likely to interfere with the location of the hearing aids.
• Over the ear – these headphones are great for hearing aids, as they are practically covering the hearing aids; each model has different cushions, so it is best to try them on before actually buying them, to check how the hearing aids work with the headphones.
• On-ear – these headphones should work only with in-the-ear hearing aids, which are invisible, or with completely-in-the-canal hearing aids.
• Bone conduction – these headphones are most suitable for in-the-ear hearing aids or completely-in-the-canal hearing aids.

You have to know that most modern hearing aids do not require headphones. Most of the hearing aids could stream into your ears the external audio. Sometimes, these hearing aids could be even better than headphones, as they stream the sound to your ears based on your hearing sensitivity.

Furthermore, modern hearing aids could be used in calls, as they could easily replace the conventional microphone and speaker.

Doctors consider that using hearing aids instead of headphones when suffering from hearing loss, could be significantly better. The settings of these devices could be easily modified on a smartphone or tablet. Also, the regular headphones do not deliver specific corrections of the frequency for those who suffer from hearing loss.

Therefore, if you suffer from hearing loss, the hearing aids could take the place of headphones, as the settings of the audio are automatically designed to deliver the best sound, depending on your hearing sensitivity.

Do Hearing Aids help tinnitus?

All patients who suffer from hearing loss and tinnitus could benefit from the use of hearing aids. But can hearing aids help tinnitus for real? Some studies have revealed that hearing aids could be useful for tinnitus, as well.

About 60% of those who suffer from tinnitus have felt that hearing aids helped them improve both the quantity and quality of sound. Only 22% of those who have been interviewed have not spotted significant improvement.

Hearing Aids Doctor

The doctor who specializes in testing and helping persons who suffer from hearing loss is called an audiologist. The main tasks of the audiologists are to:

• Examine the patients who report hearing, balance, or other related problems;
• Evaluate the results of the tests and diagnosis;
• Identify and provide suitable treatment for the patient’s needs.

An audiologist could also help you choose the right hearing aids, based on your hearing sensitivity and budget.

Hearing Aids vs Cochlear Implants

Hearing aids and cochlear implants could seem to have similar purposes, but they are, in fact, pretty different.

The hearing aids are used when the hearing loss variates from mild to profound. Hearing aids treat situations in which the type of hearing loss is determined as “conductive” or “sensorineural. Basically, hearing aids are helpful in case that your hearing loss problem is related to your inner ear or your hearing nerve.

Cochlear implants are also used when the hearing loss is moderate to severe. 

The hearing aids are used to increase the acoustic sound by specific frequencies, while the cochlear implant device should make you able to hear differently, as it translates the acoustic sounds into electrical signals. This is referred to as electrical stimulation. The cochlear implant devices have the purpose of transmitting the signals straight to the hearing nerve and further, to the brain.

Hearing aids usually cost between 3.400 USD and 7.000 USD. In some cases, the health insurance might cover the cost, partially or totally.

Cochlear implants normally cost between 60.000 USD and more than 100.000 USD. In some cases, the insurance might cover partially or totally the costs.

Hearing Aids for hunting

Some hearing aids have been developed to improve the hearing of hunters while being active. Despite that these persons are not suffering from hearing loss, they choose to use hearing aids, to better hear the sounds of the environment. Thus, it becomes easier to spot the game out in the wild.

If you plan on using hearing aids while hunting, it is best to use specific hearing aids. Normal hearing aids could lead to hearing loss, if used while hunting, as they do have any protection, at all, for the very powerful sounds, such as when a weapon is fired.

The hearing aids for hunting are specially developed for this kind of activity and they are designed to protect the hunter’s hearing. When the weapon is fired, the amplifier instantly and automatically limits the sound to a safe level. As soon as the increased sound disappears, the sound levels return to normally amplifying the sounds of the surroundings.

Hearing Aids repair

If your hearing aids have some mechanical problems, it does not necessarily mean to replace them. You can also have your hearing aids repaired.

The most common problems of the hearing aids are represented by hook damage.

Usually, the hearing aid hook gets damaged due to the way that the device is worn. The hearing aid hook is the element that suits comfortably around the ear. In case that the hearing aid hook gets damaged, the device cannot be held in position. The repair should, normally, be very easy to do. The affected pieces should be glued back together. In case that the pieces could no longer be stuck together, a new hearing aid hook must be ordered.

Another common issue of the hearing aids is represented by the damaged microphone. Such damage to the hearing aid device might be more complicated and should be done by a professional. Usually, this is a repair type that is performed by the manufacturer or authorized repair shops.

The connector tube could get clogged. This is one of the main problems that persons who use hearing aids face often. The buildups of wax could block the connector tube. This could become an unpleasant situation, as the connector tube cannot be cleaned up and it will need to be replaced. It is well-advised to thoroughly clean your ear canals of wax before placing the hearing aids.

A recurrent problem of the hearing aids is represented by power source failures. In some cases, the battery could be wrongly fitted, while other times, a loose faulty wire could obstruct the hearing aids power source. In case of such a situation, usually, the whole battery compartment requires to be replaced.

By searching on the Internet “hearing aids repair near me”, you will find the best repairing places for hearing aids. If you want to repair the hearing aids by yourself, you can also check the Internet for “hearing aids parts” and you will find the parts that you need to make your hearing aids work smoothly just as before.

Are Hearing Aids covered by insurance?

Insurance for hearing aids

Sometimes, hearing aids are covered by insurance companies. But mostly, insurance for hearing aids is not existent and the ones who suffer from hearing loss need to pay for the devices from their own pockets.

Hearing aids and medicare go hand in hand. Children who are eligible and other persons aged 21 and under could benefit from some incentives to treat their hearing loss. Medicaid covers the costs of diagnosis and treatment of hearing loss, which includes the acquisition of hearing aids, under the Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnostic, and Treatment program. Also, the costs of hearing aids for children who suffer from hearing loss could be also covered by the State Children’s Health Insurance Program.

Medicare does not offer any insurance for hearing aids for adults. Although, they might cover some costs of diagnosis, only if these procedures were ordered by a physician, to create a treatment plan.

There exist nonprofit organizations worldwide which offer financial help to those who need to get hearing aids. Other organizations help persons in need to obtain used or refurbished hearing aids.

Hearing Aids near me

Audiologists and retailers that sell hearing aids could be easily found in all areas of the world. If you are looking for an audiologist or a retailer that sells hearing aids in your proximity, you could simply search on the Internet for “Hearing aids near me” and you will find suggestions of the closest specialists in hearing aids from your vicinity.

Moreover, most of the search engines will provide you with reviews of the specialists’ places, to make it easier for you to choose your closest and most professional specialist in hearing aids.

Conclusion

Hearing aids offer you the chance of living a normal life again.

Before buying any hearing aid device, it is best to consult with your audiologist, to determine the severity of your hearing loss. The specialist also should be able to make you a recommendation of the most suitable hearing aid device for you and your personal needs.

As there are various types of hearing aids, and the newer ones have more functionalities than ever, it has indeed become difficult to choose the right device for your personal use.

Look out for the hearing aid that ticks most of your needs boxes, including quality, price, and functionalities.

Take care of your hearing aids and they will take care of you!