Different Types of Hearing aids

The use of hearing aids in America has increased dramatically in the past decade.  Nearly 50% of all Americans age 60 and older are currently experiencing hearing loss significant enough to impact their daily lives.  To these hundreds of thousands of individuals, the use of hearing aids has allowed them to experience close to normal hearing and has enhanced their daily lives. With recent significant advances in technology, there are now multiple hearing aids on the market to choose from.  Some of the most common types of hearing aids today include the ‘behind the ear’ or BTE, the ‘in the ear’ or ITE, and the ‘ear canal’ or ITC. So what is the difference?

The BTE device is easily recognizable as it contains a case and an earmold which are connected by a small wire.  These devices are used primarily for mild hearing loss.  One of the major advantages of this type of device is its enhanced durability.  Since the BTE does not reside inside the ear, the chance of earwax building up and damaging the device is greatly reduced.

The ITE device fits inside the ear but not in the actual ear canal.  Although they are visible, their unique shape and small size are not noticeable to most people.  One of the major advantages to this device is that it is custom tailored to fit inside each individual’s ear.  These devices are typically used in mile to severe loss of hearing.

The ITC device is invisible and actually resides inside the ear canal itself and is therefore completely invisible when worn.  Like the ITE, the ITC is custom made to fit the individual.  The major advantage of this device is its ability to more accurately replicate natural hearing due to its unique placement inside the ear canal.

Digital, Cheap and Discount Hearing Aids Reviews

A hearing aid is an electronic acoustic hearing device which is placed in the ear or behind the ear. The hearing aid is designed to help the wearer in amplifying and modulating sound. Hearing aids have evolved in the last few decades with the advent of hearing instruments which are available in various sizes, shapes, power, circuitry and models. A number of varieties of digital hearing aids reviews are available in the market for the customers to choose from. Every hearing aid has a microphone, loudspeaker, a battery and a circuitry. These circuitries are either analog or digital. The digital hearing aids have a number of features which are not present in an analog circuitry based hearing aid. Some of the popular and cheap hearing aids are Phonak, Oticon, Beltone and Miracle ear.

 

 

- Reviews of different hearing aid companies

Phonak Hearing aids:

Phonak is a Swiss company active in the manufacturing of hearing aids. They have specialized in the manufacturing of micro style hearing aids for cosmetic appeal. Most of the hearing aids under the Phonak brand are small and very compact. Phonak hearing aids provide high performance by automatically picking up small and changing sounds. The powerful and precise instruments in the Phonak hearing aids ensure listening of sounds without any difficulty. Phonak manufactures a variety of hearing aids such as the In the Ear, Back of the Ear, and Completely in the Canal. These hearing aids assist people with moderate to severe hearing difficulties. Phonak is one of the top three hearing aids manufacturers and is also preferred by most audiologists. They also manufacture analog and digital hearing aids. Though Phonak manufactures cheap hearing aids their quality is among the best in the world. Phonak has focused on hearing disabilities among children, and has put a lot of research into developing cheap and discount hearing aids for the welfare of these children. In the year 2010 Phonak has upgraded their entire product range with a faster chip called Spice. This microchip is known to be twice as fast as their previous models. Phonak hearing aids come with a warranty of one or two years. Phonak has also been rewarded with Medical Design Excellence Award for their unique and quality designs.

Oticon Hearing aids:

Oticon is a Danish company into manufacturing hearing aids and is also a well-known and trusted brand. They manufacture hearing aids for different types of hearing disabilities. The Oticon hearing aids come in three different categories. They are, the performance line, illustrated, and the Epoq. They provide with a balanced sound due to their technically sound wireless communication. The Design line from Oticon Dual offers performance and elegance for the wearer. When used in a pair they work together rather than work separately, to give a balanced sound also known as spatial sound. Oticon hearing aids also feature a model called Sumo which is affordable and durable and also minimizes battery drain and is suitable for active people. Oticon Hearing aids also come with one or two year warranty.

Beltone Hearing aid:

Beltone is active in the field of manufacturing hearing aids since the year 1940. They are one of the largest and most reliable hearing aid manufacturers. Beltone has different circuitry hearing aids according to the requirements of the consumer. They include the premier circuitry, advantage circuitry systems, quality circuitry systems and the basic circuitry systems. The premier circuitry has two ranges one for target listening by making sounds relaxing and the other for use in range of sounds. This makes sounds comfortable and natural. The advantage circuitry also comes in two ranges, one focusing on the speech and the other for variable sounds which is found outdoors. The two variations in the quality circuitry focus on the comfort levels and adaptability. The Arca brand in the basic circuitry has features like volume controls, and is telephone adaptable. The Beltone hearing aids is preferred by many insurance plans. Belcare centre started by Beltone in different states caters to the patients needs and also provides them with prompt treatments and discount hearing aids.

Miracle Ear hearing aids:

Miracle ear does not manufacture hearing aids but are manufactured through Siemens. They are pioneers of in the ear style hearing aids. These hearing aids were appealing and cosmetic friendly for their wearers. Miracle ear boasts of six different sizes and styles of hearing aids mainly the cosmetic style, comfort style, behind the ear style, and the open fit behind the ear style. Miracle ear hearing aids primarily focus on comfort, design quality and performance. All of the Miracle Ear hearing aids are digital and have free battery. Miracle Ear, hearing aids also come with one, two and three year warranty. Amplifit programs by the company help them in evaluating the hearing requirements of the customer and provide them with a perfect hearing solution.

A good hearing aid help in accessing sounds and are not capable of correcting or curing hearing loss.

Hearing loss problem is sky rocketing in all parts of the world. Nearly 38 millions of Americans have hearing problems. Noise pollution in all parts of the world is adding fuel to fire of ear related diseases. Proper co-ordination of informations from the two ears is extremely important for brain to function efficiently. Any change in the perplexing neuorsystem leads to hearing problems.

Symptoms of hearing loss are many. It may be sudden or gradual. Often there will be difficulty in understanding what people are saying. You may be able to hear but may not be able to bifurcate what they are saying. Just imagine the difficulty in misunderstanding words and creating confusions!

Hearing loss problem may be bilateral or unilateral. It may affect only one ear or for both.Symptoms varies to the causes. If you have vertigo or tinnitus the hearing loss problem will be gradual. Aging is another decisive factor for hearing loss.

Some other symptoms of hearing loss are hissing or buzzing sound. Often you may not be aware of it.It may or may not be accompanied by ear itching, pus, ear pain. Many people just ignore these starting symptoms. It is better to consult an ENT Specialist if the frequency of these symptoms are more.

Hearing loss causes paves way to hearing loss symptoms. Frequent Ear infections, ringing in the ears, vertigo all leads to the hearing loss symptoms.Your occupation or profession is another important factor in deciding the nature of hearing loss symptoms. Any sound above 70 decibel leads to hearing loss.

Hearing loss can also be hereditary. Families having the history of vertigo,tinnitus, menieres disease will pass the same history to younger generations. Once you are identified with any ear related problems treatment should not be delayed. More the delay more the chance of having hearing loss symptoms.It is advisable for such people to have yearly checkup with a medical practioner.

Often people with hearing problems complain of muffled hearing. They may have the tendency to hear television or mp3 at a higher volume.
People with hearing loss problems will have difficulty in a party or meeting.
They develop the tendency of depression. For them the world is a quiet place.This isolating situation is a tragic world of stress and pain.Some even avoid talking to people.

It is better to have a self check in the beginning stage. Make a note of these points. If people are angry because of your misunderstanding, you are asking people to repeat the same questions, other people complain of your volume in talking you are having hearing problems. If you make a checklist of questions and find yourself at least two or three positive answers you can be confident in your hearing capacity. Otherwise prefer a consultation with a doctor.

Timely diagnosis and treatment can brighten your life.Monitoring your health helps you to pick up early problems. Early treatment can prevent hearing loss symptoms from being worse.Ignoring the symptoms leads to total deafness.