High Tech Hearing

 

The New Age of Hearing Aids

Imagine not having to turn up the TV. Imagine feeling confident having a conversation with someone in a noisy room, restaurant, at bingo, or on the phone.

Hearing Loss Can Lead To Loneliness

Hearing loss can make you feel lonely, dependent on others, and even con-fused. Left untreated hearing lBTEoss is associated with serious health con-cerns, including falls, cognitive decline, and even depression. The simple integration of a hearing aids into your everyday living can be life-changing today, and far into your future as well.

Hearing aid technology has come a long way, allowing for advanced devices that can often be undetectable to others. If you suspect that you could bene-fit from hearing aids, or your doctor or audiologist has told you it’s time to consider hearing aids, don’t delay. Protecting your hearing today can mean protecting your mental and cognitive health tomorrow.

The hearing aids of today are designed to be highly effective while remaining discreet. At their core, hearing aids consist of four parts: a microphone, pro-cessor, receiver, and battery. The microphone picks up sounds from your environment. The processor enhances the tone and delivers a signal to the receiver. The receiver delivers the amplified signal to the ear canal. The bat-tery supplies power to these components.

At Elite ENT, we offer a wide range of hearing aid technologies and dispense various brands of the three main types of hearing aids (1)behind-the-ear (BTE), (2) in-the-ear (ITE), and (3) in-the-canal (ITC) hearing aids. Some ITCs are so small they fit entirely in the ear canal and are called completely-in-canal (CIC) aids. Dr. Fierra works with her patients to help ensure that you are fitted with the type of hearing aid that is best for your individual needs.

What to look for when purchasing hearing aids

Power. Today’s hearing aids, even the most basic models, are light years ahead of the hearing aids our grandparents used. Features included in most of today’s basic hearing aids are:

Digital noise reduction. A favorite feature of many, digital noise reduction al-lows the hearing aid to analyze signals to determine which ones are undesir-able (such as background noises) and reduce them.

Impulse noise reduction. This feature softens unwanted loud noises such as dishes clanging or car keys rattling.

Wind noise reduction. Just like it sounds, this feature softens the sound of the wind blowing across the microphone when you are golfing, boating, or in other outdoor situations.

Feedback management. With hearing aids, feedback happens. Basic hearing aids offer an algorithm that reduces overall amplification to deal with un-pleasant whistling. More advanced hearing aids may use a different type of algorithm that reduces feedback without reducing overall amplification.

Telecoil. This wireless feature picks up electromagnetic signals from devic-es or looped rooms and feeds them directly into the hearing aid’s processor (bypassing the microphone). Telecoil allows for an optimal, feedback-free listening experience during tours, public performances, and worship services where it is available.

More advanced hearing aids may include additional features such as Bluetooth capability, rechargeable batteries, tinnitus masking, remote sound control, artificial intelligence (where the aid “learns” your preferences in different environments, and automatically implements them) and more.

Choosing the right hearing aid is a very individual process, but you won’t have to do it alone. Dr. Mary Ferriera will work with you to determine the best hearing aid to meet your auditory and lifestyle needs as well as your budget. All you have to do is make an appointment.