How to Find the Right Hearing Aid

Hearing issues are one of the most common health issues adults visit an ENT for. 

While hearing problems tend to begin in the late 40s & are most prominent in the elderly, younger people can experience it too.

A range of health issues can bring about hearing problems. These include certain infectious diseases, autoimmune disorders, injuries, accidents, surgeries, tumors, & side effects of some medications.

Certain disorders like Meniere’s Disease & Labyrinthitis can also cause hearing issues. 

Tinnitus often presents with hearing issues, which causes the patients to lose their external hearing, sometimes completely.

Most patients have experienced significant improvement in their condition with the help of hearing aids. 

Hearing Aids can help patients with varying degrees of hearing loss live productive, fulfilled lives.

However, many types of hearing aids exist in the market. Choosing the right one for your hearing loss is crucial to ensure they’re actually helpful for your condition.

In this article, we’ll tell you about the different types of hearing aids & tips on choosing the best hearing aids for your hearing issues.

Functioning of Hearing Aids:

Hearing Aids are digital devices that amplify external sounds in order to help the wearer hear those better.

They are usually powered by traditional batteries; some even come with rechargeable batteries.

Hearing Aids consist of the following parts:

• Microphone: These capture external sounds from the surroundings around you & sends those to the amplifier.

• Amplifier: As the name implies, it amplifies the sound received from the microphone & transcodes it into digital information bits. The amplifier is set to a certain frequency of sound, & only amplifies the sound upto the level of requirement. Since every individual has differing degrees of hearing loss, each hearing aid consists of amplifiers set to different frequencies according to specific requirements. The amplifier sends these digital signals to the speakers/receivers as a final leg of the hearing aid mechanism. 

• Receivers: These convert the digital signals sent by the amplifier into sound waves that can be heard by the patient. In some hearing aids, they are marked as ‘speakers’. 

Types of Hearing Aids:

Hearing Aids differ by size, power, & usage. Different individuals require different kinds of hearing aids for their hearing issues. 

Generally, your doctor will recommend the perfect hearing aid for your condition.

Still, it pays to know about the various types of hearing aids you can choose from.

Completely-In-The-Canal(CIC):

A Completely-In-The-Canal(CIC) hearing aid can easily fit inside your ear canal completely. This allows them to stay hidden from an external point of view. CIC hearing aids are useful for people that suffer from mild to moderate degree of hearing loss.

Since CIC hearing aid fits completely in the ear canal, it has several advantages. These include:

• Least visibility from outside. Small size allows for easy portability.

• Since it is inside the ear, it is less likely to pick up wind & other external noise.

However, it also has certain disadvantages. These include:

• Come with extremely small batteries that don’t have a long life. Owing to their small size, CIC hearing aids can sometimes get difficult to handle. 

• CIC hearing aids often lack additional features like volume control & directional microphone.

• Earwax buildup can easily clog the ears thus impacting the functioning of CIC hearing aids.

In-The-Canal(ITC) Hearing Aids:

An In-The-Ear canal is a custom made hearing aid, designed to fit only partially inside the ear canal. Like CIC hearing aids, ITC hearing aids also help people with mild to moderate hearing loss. 

The advantage of ITC hearing aids is that it remains hidden from an external point of view. They also contain some enhanced features to support hearing loss that aren’t normally available in CIC hearing aids. 

Its disadvantages include:

• Handling issues due to its small size

• Like CIC hearing aids, ITC hearing aids are also prone to earwax clogging blocking the ear canal. 

In-The-Ear(ITE) Hearing Aids:

An In-The-Ear(ITE) hearing aid has two types. One type is designed to fit the outer ear that is a bowl-shape(also known as full shell). Another type is designed for fitting inside the lower part of the ear(also known as half shell). 

Both are useful for people with hearing loss ranging from mild to severe. 

ITE hearing aids also come with directional microphone support, which is useful for locating the exact source of the sound.

The advantages of ITE hearing aids include:

• Extra features that aren’t included in other types of hearing aids, like volume control.

• Are usually easier to handle than other completely-in-the-ear hearing aids. 

• Come with a larger battery with a longer lifespan.

ITE hearing aids also have some disadvantages. These include:

• Easily visible from an external point of view

• Functioning can get affected by excessive earwax

• They might also pick up an increased amount of wind noise & other external disturbances.

Behind-The-Ear Hearing Aids:

A Behind-The-Ear hearing aid loops atop your ear & is located behind the ear. The hearing aid fits in your ear canal with a tube connecting it to the custom-made earpiece(also called the ear mold). 

BTE hearing aids are the best hearing aids for people of all ages and support all kinds of hearing loss.

A Behind-The-Ear hearing aid has many advantages. These include:

• Some new designs make it easy to hide BTE hearing aids. Normally, it is the largest hearing aid available in the market.

• Consists of directional microphones

• Has better sound enhancement & amplification capabilities

Its disadvantages include:

• More wind noise and external interference

• Might or might not come with rechargeable batteries

Receiver-In-The-Ear or Receiver-In-Canal hearing aids:

Receiver-In-The-Ear(RIE) or Receiver-In-Canal(RIC) hearing aids are quite similar to a behind-the-ear hearing aid. The speaker or receiver fits inside the ear canal in a similar manner.

However, in a RIE or RIC hearing aid, a tiny wire connects the ear piece to the speaker/receiver, unlike a tube in the case of BTE hearing aids.

RIE or RIC hearing aids are useful for treating mild to severe hearing loss in patients of all age groups.

A RIE or RIC hearing aid has many advantages. These include:

• Its behind-the-ear portion is somewhat less visible than BTE hearing aids. 

• Consists of directional microphone

• Also consists of manual control features

• Generally comes with a rechargeable battery

Its disadvantages include its visibility from an external point of view & susceptibility to earwax clogging and blockage.

Open Fit hearing aids:

Open Fit hearing aids are a variation of behind-the-ear(BTE) & Receiver-In-The-Ear(RIE) or Receiver-In-Canal(RIC) hearing aids.

It basically consists of a BTE hearing aid modified with a thin connecting tube. In the case of RIE or RIC hearing aid, it consists of an open dome in the ear.

This design helps it to keep the ear canal open & free. It allows any low-frequency external sounds to enter the ear canal the natural way, & amplifies any other external sounds in an enhanced manner.

Thus, Open Fit hearing aids are a good choice for people who have adequate low-frequency hearing & only require other external sounds to be modified. They can easily help people with mild to moderate degree of hearing loss. 

How to decide which is the best hearing aid for me?

These decisions are best left to an audiologist & ENT specialist. They can help you find the exact choice of hearing aid & even get it custom designed to better suit your needs. 

Naturally, this requires an ample amount of data. 

Your doctor will conduct elaborate hearing tests to find out the exact range of frequencies that you are able to hear. 

Based on the results of the hearing tests, they will either recommend a readymade hearing aid to you or order a customized hearing aid that helps your hearing loss in the best possible way.

Getting the right hearing aid is important to live a healthy, meaningful life if you suffer from any degree of hearing loss. Putting off the decision to the future will only harm you & worsen your hearing progressively.

Consult with a hearing specialist & an ENT today.