Hearing Aid is a specially designed hearing device that helps in better hearing by amplifying sounds to a person. The battery powered electronic device is fitted with a microphone to pick up sound around a person, an amplifier to make the sound louder and a receiver to send these amplified sounds into the ear. Modern hearing aids are small enough to wear in or behind the ear. They help a person hear better in both quiet and noisy places.
In most cases, hearing loss is caused by disease, aging, loud noises and Medications. Hearing loss occurs due to damage in inner ear or the nerve that links the ear with the brain. Hearing loss which is caused by problems with the ear canal, eardrum, or middle ear is called conductive hearing loss. In most cases, the doctors prescribe for surgery or other medical assistances to make it better. Hearing aid comes handy to people who have an open ear canal and a relatively normal external ear.
People who do not have an external ear or ear canal cannot use hearing aids. These people are given a device that sends sound to the inner ear through the bone of their skull. An ENT and an Audiologist can confirm the causes and severity of hearing loss through certain tests.
Depending upon the type of hearing loss, its severity, your age, capacity to manage small device and your lifestyle your audiologist suggests you the best hearing aid for you. Generally, there are two types of hearing aids: Analogue hearing aids and Digital hearing aids.
Analogue Hearing Aids: these types of hearing aids convert sound waves into electrical signals and then make them louder. These are usually less expensive and have simple volume controls capacity.
Digital Hearing Aids: These types of hearing aids can convert sound waves into numerical codes which are similar to computer codes before amplifying them. The code contains information about the direction of a sound and its pitch or volume. This enables to adjust the sound depending upon your present situation, whether you are in a quiet room, or on the road. In most cases it gets adjusted automatically. Although Digital Hearing aids are costlier than the analogue hearing aids, they yield better results. Available in smaller size, these hearing aids are more powerful.
Depending upon the style, hearing aids are of three types: Canal, In the Ear (ITE) and Behind the Ear (BTE).
Canal: these types of hearing aids fit inside your ear and are harder to see from outside. An in-the-canal (ITC) hearing aid fits the specific ear canal while a completely-in-canal (CIC) aid is smaller and is almost hidden in the ear. People with mild to moderately severe ear loss can use this hearing aid.
In-the-ear (ITE): In the Ear hearing aids fit completely inside the outer ear. It is fitted with a hard plastic case to hold the electronics. They work best for people with mild to severe hearing loss, but they don’t work for children whose ears are still growing.
Behind-the-ear (BTE): These types of hearing aids remain in a hard plastic case behind the ear. A plastic ear mold fits inside the outer ear and sends sound to the ear. BTEs works best for people with mild to severe hearing loss.
Initially, you may face discomfort while using your hearing aids. With the help of your audiologist these problems can be overcome. Under proper guidance and with good care you can use hearing aids for many years.
About CURA
In a beautiful set up and state of the art facilities at CURA, treatment for hearing loss are provided by experienced ENT and audiologists.
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