Hearing Aids

As you are aware hearing loss affects not only the person with hearing loss but also the friends, family and/or co-workers who interact with the person with hearing loss.  As such, at Audiology Services, we frequently find the interactive hearing aid selection and fitting process and subsequent adjustment to amplification are most successful when a family member or friend accompanies the patient to the first appointment. 

Procuring hearing aids is an interactive process between you and your audiologist.  Your success with amplification is much more dependant upon this process than on any particular style or brand of hearing aid or the particular circuit inside the hearing instruments themselves. 

At Audiology Services we work with all major brands of hearing instruments and all circuit types.  The instruments selected for you will be made in consultation with one of our audiologists and will be based upon your life-style needs, your cosmetic preference and your budgetary concerns.  The most expensive hearing aids may not be the best for you depending on the types of listening environments you find yourself within.  

Common Hearing Aid Styles:

All circuit types are available in any style

Completely-in-the-Canal (CIC)

CIC instruments are the smallest and most discreet of all hearing aids.  Discretion of this style is only rivaled by the new mini-behind the ear aids fit with an open mold (see “Behind the Ear Open Fit” below).  The primary disadvantages of the CIC hearing aid are the shorter battery life, slightly higher repair incidence, and the inability to add directional microphones to suppress sounds behind you.  CIC hearing aids are best suited for mild or moderate hearing losses.

In the Canal (ITC) and Half-Shell

The ITC and Half-Shell hearing instruments take a slightly larger battery than the CIC affording longer battery life. They are typically large enough to allow for directional microphones for the suppression of sounds behind you and telephone circuitry to enhance phone use yet maintain a cosmetic advantage.  ITC and half-shell hearing aids will easily accommodate mild and moderate hearing losses and some moderately-severe hearing losses.

In the Ear (ITE)

ITE hearing aids (also known as “Full Shell”) most often take a larger battery than the ITC and Half-Shell instruments adding to battery longevity. Including directional microphones and telephone circuitry in this size hearing aid presents no problem.  ITE hearing aids will accommodate mild, moderate, moderately-severe and some severe hearing losses.

Behind the Ear (BTE)

These hearing aids can accommodate most any degree of hearing loss.  Women, or men with longer hair, often prefer these instruments as the hair covers the hearing aids and the ear mold insert is more cosmetically appealing than ITE or ITC hearing aids.  These hearing aids can be fit with directional microphones.  Telephone circuits are fairly standard on the BTE hearing aids.  These hearing aids also have the capability of being coupled to external microphones and other assistive devices to improve hearing in noise to the greatest extent possible.

Behind the Ear Open Fit

The open fit hearing aids were designed to accomplish two purposes: to provide a highly discreet hearing aid while leaving the ear canal largely un-occluded.  Leaving the ear canal open greatly decreases the resonance of the wearer’s own voice for those with relatively good hearing for low-frequency (low-pitched) sounds.  Because the ear canal is open the amount of power is limited resulting in best fits for mild and moderate hearing losses.

What You Can Expect From Your Hearing Aids

Hearing aids are miniaturized electronic devices that take minimal maintenance.  If you follow the simple maintenance instructions from your audiologist you should experience good performance from your hearing aids.

            Your ears and your brain may require several weeks to fully adjust to the sounds you hear with your hearing aids.  If your hearing loss occurred gradually over several years it will take some wearing time before you can place some of the more distracting sounds of life into the background as you did before your hearing loss.

            While you will find hearing aids to be extremely helpful, it is important to keep in mind that on average hearing aids only restore one half of a person’s hearing loss.  You may find that while you hear much better you still miss some of the sounds you want to hear.  It is for this reason that you will find the suggestions in the Useful Information section of this website to be helpful.  Completion of the LACE program can also add greatly to the benefit you obtain from hearing aids.

            Following selection of the correct amplification for your hearing loss which you will do in concert with your audiologist, the circuit will be programmed to make softer sounds audible, average intensity sounds comfortable and loud sounds tolerable.  Unlike the circuits of the past, today’s hearing aids provide a much higher degree of comfort for users.

What You Can Expect From Us

We will work closely with you to ensure that the proper hearing aids are selected for your degree of hearing loss and the listening demands of your life style.  We will program your hearing aids for your current hearing loss and should your hearing change in the future we will, at no charge, reset the hearing aids’ circuitry to accommodate the change.  We will help you with any repair needs that may arise. 

To minimize repairs we provide periodic cleaning and maintenance checks for your hearing aids for the life of the instruments at no charge.  In fact, to help you remember to return for your check ups we will give you fresh batteries at each visit (up to 12 packages of batteries for each hearing aid every year at no charge).  In short, we are here to ensure your success.  We have found that the best way to ensure our own success is to ensure yours.