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Hearing aids are smaller, sleeker and with better sound
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| HHIssues@aol.com 2005-06-22, 11:48 am |
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source: bhNEWS
>From the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin,California,June 19, 2005
-------------------
Hearing is believing
Aids are smaller, sleeker and with better sound
By Jillian O'Connor
Staff Writer
Sunday, June 19, 2005 - Forget the hearing aids of the past - those
clunky devices that amplified every little sound and made it all but
impossible to hear a conversation in a crowded restaurant.
Today's models are smaller, sleeker and with vastly improved sound,
thanks to digital technology that allows wearers to discriminate
differences in noise level.
They're "basically little computers," says audiologist Jeff Grama,
owner of Hearing Aid Services of Hollywood. Digital models often run
multiple programs simultaneously to deal with various sound
environments, such as crowded restaurants or stores, using spectral
analysis to determine appropriate settings.
The switch to digital also has resulted in some tiny in-the-canal
models attractive to many, especially those who don't want the device
to be noticed by others.
But the small size comes at a price, with typical digital models
running from about $2,500 to $3,500 per ear, and roughly 80 percent
of users requiring a hearing aid on each side. However, conventional
hearing-aid models can be procured for as little as $600 to $700 each.
Despite advances in hearing-aid technology, the devices are used by
only a quarter of the 28 million Americans believed to suffer from
hearing loss. And after age 65, as many as 1 in 4 people may need to
use a hearing instrument. But many senior citizens, unaware of the new
technology and wary of negative stereotypes, refuse to wear them.
In the past, hearing aids were troublesome in certain situations.
When a wearer received a hug, for instance, the devices would often
beep loudly. With new, intelligent digital technology, that problem
has been thwarted and the startling beeping is down to a minimum.
"Now the longest you would ever hear anything would be maybe a tenth of
a second, which most people wouldn't even recognize as being a sound,"
said Grama.
An added benefit is the increased subtlety of sound and clarity the
new technology provides, according to David Fabry, vice president of
education and public relations at the hearing-aid company Phonak and
the former president of the American Academy of Audiology. Soft sounds
are soft, and louder sounds do not become uncomfortably loud.
"Many hearing aids in the past have not really achieved that," said
Fabry, who noted that the older models merely amplified sound. "And
through the use of digital, and a number of the signal-processing
features that come along with that, we're providing a person with
hearing loss the same capability, to offer dynamics of sounds that
someone with normal hearing would (perceive)."
Phil Kaplan, 61, was born hard of hearing and has been using hearing
aids for nearly 50 years, starting with the large behind-the-ear model
that was commonplace at the time.
"It mainly was an amplification tool," said Kaplan, who is the
president of a Southern California chapter of Self Help for Hard of
Hearing People, or SHHH. "All it did was increase sound. It didn't do
much qualitatively. And it didn't have a lot of flexibility."
But today, Kaplan owns a behind-the-ear digital model, one that he
points out is precisely matched to an individual patient's needs.
"Fifty years ago, you could not do that," he said. "All you could do
was crank up the volume."
He finds the newer hearing aids help him hear conversations even in
loud restaurants and crowded stores, whereas before the devices just
made everything louder.
But since it's always mechanically reproduced sound, Kaplan said, it
can be "tinny" since hearing-aid technology still has "even bigger
strides" to make.
One concern audiologists said they hear again and again from patients
is a fear of being negatively judged for wearing a hearing aid -
especially being thought of as old.
"Many people associate hearing loss with getting older, and many
people don't want to," said Fabry. "As we have baby boomers who are
living longer and working longer, the idea of wearing a hearing aid
might be seen by some as a sign of weakness - in some way, you're not
going to be able to do your job as well as that young Gen-Xer who wants
your job."
Beverley Gaines, 76, was quick to point out, hearing-aid wearers win in
the trade-off: "My philosophy is, I don't care who knows I'm
wearing a hearing aid - as long as I can hear."
In addition to wearing a hearing aid, Gaines helped start a lip-
reading class.
"I'll tell you this: It's not easy to learn to lip read because
everybody in California is from a different state," she said with a
laugh, underscoring the need for a little machine assistance.
A commanding presence behind hearing aids hasn't hurt, either, as
Presidents Reagan and Clinton, who both used the devices in office,
made the instruments more high-profile and more accepted, according
to Grama.
"I guess we need more presidents who don't hear well," he said.
Karen Spayd a California State University, Northridge, audiology
lecturer and clinic supervisor, said that hearing loss is often
gradual and can have a variety of causes - and it's not always
apparent to a person that he or she has lost hearing until
communication with family and friends suffers.
"We try to tell our patients that the hearing aid will provide better
quality of life," said Spayd, noting that not hearing well can have
ramifications beyond missing a few words.
"If you let the hearing loss go, the hearing loss is associated with
not only communication breakdowns but depression, isolation and other
factors.
"And all that can be avoided by just having a hearing aid."
Unfortunately, the cost of a hearing aid is a major concern for many.
Apart from some union plans, most insurance options do not cover the
cost of hearing aids, much to the chagrin of hearing-aid users and
audiologists.
But as audiologist Rose Bongiovanni, director of training and
development at the hearing-aid company Widex, explained, digital
devices, which typically last four to six years, can pay for
themselves as audiologists can tweak the instruments to match a
patient's changing hearing ability over time.
Even with the new advances, though, patients do not always heed their
audiologist's recommendations to get help for their hearing in a timely
fashion.
"Research has shown that from the time a hearing loss is diagnosed to
the time a person does something about it, it is seven years," said
Spayd. "That's seven years of not having good quality of life."
As Carol Fee, a senior citizen who uses a digital model, summed it
up: "If you want to communicate, get a hearing aid."
Signs of hearing loss
You should have your hearing checked by an audiologist if you
experience any of the following problems:
- Complaining that people are mumbling or speaking unclearly or too
rapidly.
- Having problems with understanding speech when there's background
noise.
- Experiencing problems hearing on the phone.
- Asking people to repeat themselves often.
Hearing aid lexicon
In the ear (ITE): Rests in ear; may fill exterior.
In the canal (ITC): Rests in ear canal and extends into ear.
Behind the ear (BTE): Hooks onto top of ear and rests behind it.
Completely in the canal (CIC): Inserted in ear canal; nearly
invisible.
Digital programmable: An individualized digital model that can run
programs for different environments, such as in crowds or at home.
Wireless microphones: Often worn on neck or elsewhere away from
hearing aid.
Directional microphones: Help to filter noise and offer ability to
tell where sound is coming from better than traditional hearing aids.
Usually offered in the larger models.
Useful links for hard of hearing
www.hearingloss.org: National Web site for SHHH, Self Help for Hard
of Hearing People, which distributes a magazine on hearing issues to
members.
www.shhhca.org: California State Association of SHHH. Provides link
to more than 15 chapters in Southern California.
www.ddtp.org: Deaf and Disabled Telecommunications Program, mandated by
state Legislature and run by the state Public Utilities
Commission. Provides access to various telephone services for the
hard of hearing and deaf, among others.
www.leginfo.ca.gov: Links to California's SB 724, which would allow
Cal State Northridge to grant a clinical doctorate of audiology,
which will become the required degree for all American audiologists
in the next few years. There is currently only one audiology
doctorate program in the UC/Cal State system, and many fear that
there will be a severe shortage of audiologists in California once
the new standards are in place.
Aids are smaller, sleeker and with better sound
By Jillian O'Connor
Staff Writer
Sunday, June 19, 2005 - Forget the hearing aids of the past - those
clunky devices that amplified every little sound and made it all but
impossible to hear a conversation in a crowded restaurant.
Today's models are smaller, sleeker and with vastly improved sound,
thanks to digital technology that allows wearers to discriminate
differences in noise level.
They're "basically little computers," says audiologist Jeff Grama,
owner of Hearing Aid Services of Hollywood. Digital models often run
multiple programs simultaneously to deal with various sound
environments, such as crowded restaurants or stores, using spectral
analysis to determine appropriate settings.
The switch to digital also has resulted in some tiny in-the-canal
models attractive to many, especially those who don't want the device
to be noticed by others.
But the small size comes at a price, with typical digital models
running from about $2,500 to $3,500 per ear, and roughly 80 percent
of users requiring a hearing aid on each side. However, conventional
hearing-aid models can be procured for as little as $600 to $700 each.
Despite advances in hearing-aid technology, the devices are used by
only a quarter of the 28 million Americans believed to suffer from
hearing loss. And after age 65, as many as 1 in 4 people may need to
use a hearing instrument. But many senior citizens, unaware of the new
technology and wary of negative stereotypes, refuse to wear them.
In the past, hearing aids were troublesome in certain situations.
When a wearer received a hug, for instance, the devices would often
beep loudly. With new, intelligent digital technology, that problem
has been thwarted and the startling beeping is down to a minimum.
"Now the longest you would ever hear anything would be maybe a tenth of
a second, which most people wouldn't even recognize as being a sound,"
said Grama.
An added benefit is the increased subtlety of sound and clarity the
new technology provides, according to David Fabry, vice president of
education and public relations at the hearing-aid company Phonak and
the former president of the American Academy of Audiology. Soft sounds
are soft, and louder sounds do not become uncomfortably loud.
"Many hearing aids in the past have not really achieved that," said
Fabry, who noted that the older models merely amplified sound. "And
through the use of digital, and a number of the signal-processing
features that come along with that, we're providing a person with
hearing loss the same capability, to offer dynamics of sounds that
someone with normal hearing would (perceive)."
Phil Kaplan, 61, was born hard of hearing and has been using hearing
aids for nearly 50 years, starting with the large behind-the-ear model
that was commonplace at the time.
"It mainly was an amplification tool," said Kaplan, who is the
president of a Southern California chapter of Self Help for Hard of
Hearing People, or SHHH. "All it did was increase sound. It didn't do
much qualitatively. And it didn't have a lot of flexibility."
But today, Kaplan owns a behind-the-ear digital model, one that he
points out is precisely matched to an individual patient's needs.
"Fifty years ago, you could not do that," he said. "All you could do
was crank up the volume."
He finds the newer hearing aids help him hear conversations even in
loud restaurants and crowded stores, whereas before the devices just
made everything louder.
But since it's always mechanically reproduced sound, Kaplan said, it
can be "tinny" since hearing-aid technology still has "even bigger
strides" to make.
One concern audiologists said they hear again and again from patients
is a fear of being negatively judged for wearing a hearing aid -
especially being thought of as old.
"Many people associate hearing loss with getting older, and many
people don't want to," said Fabry. "As we have baby boomers who are
living longer and working longer, the idea of wearing a hearing aid
might be seen by some as a sign of weakness - in some way, you're not
going to be able to do your job as well as that young Gen-Xer who wants
your job."
Beverley Gaines, 76, was quick to point out, hearing-aid wearers win in
the trade-off: "My philosophy is, I don't care who knows I'm
wearing a hearing aid - as long as I can hear."
In addition to wearing a hearing aid, Gaines helped start a lip-
reading class.
"I'll tell you this: It's not easy to learn to lip read because
everybody in California is from a different state," she said with a
laugh, underscoring the need for a little machine assistance.
A commanding presence behind hearing aids hasn't hurt, either, as
Presidents Reagan and Clinton, who both used the devices in office,
made the instruments more high-profile and more accepted, according
to Grama.
"I guess we need more presidents who don't hear well," he said.
Karen Spayd a California State University, Northridge, audiology
lecturer and clinic supervisor, said that hearing loss is often
gradual and can have a variety of causes - and it's not always
apparent to a person that he or she has lost hearing until
communication with family and friends suffers.
"We try to tell our patients that the hearing aid will provide better
quality of life," said Spayd, noting that not hearing well can have
ramifications beyond missing a few words.
"If you let the hearing loss go, the hearing loss is associated with
not only communication breakdowns but depression, isolation and other
factors.
"And all that can be avoided by just having a hearing aid."
Unfortunately, the cost of a hearing aid is a major concern for many.
Apart from some union plans, most insurance options do not cover the
cost of hearing aids, much to the chagrin of hearing-aid users and
audiologists.
But as audiologist Rose Bongiovanni, director of training and
development at the hearing-aid company Widex, explained, digital
devices, which typically last four to six years, can pay for
themselves as audiologists can tweak the instruments to match a
patient's changing hearing ability over time.
Even with the new advances, though, patients do not always heed their
audiologist's recommendations to get help for their hearing in a timely
fashion.
"Research has shown that from the time a hearing loss is diagnosed to
the time a person does something about it, it is seven years," said
Spayd. "That's seven years of not having good quality of life."
As Carol Fee, a senior citizen who uses a digital model, summed it
up: "If you want to communicate, get a hearing aid."
Signs of hearing loss
You should have your hearing checked by an audiologist if you
experience any of the following problems:
- Complaining that people are mumbling or speaking unclearly or too
rapidly.
- Having problems with understanding speech when there's background
noise.
- Experiencing problems hearing on the phone.
- Asking people to repeat themselves often.
Hearing aid lexicon
In the ear (ITE): Rests in ear; may fill exterior.
In the canal (ITC): Rests in ear canal and extends into ear.
Behind the ear (BTE): Hooks onto top of ear and rests behind it.
Completely in the canal (CIC): Inserted in ear canal; nearly
invisible.
Digital programmable: An individualized digital model that can run
programs for different environments, such as in crowds or at home.
Wireless microphones: Often worn on neck or elsewhere away from
hearing aid.
Directional microphones: Help to filter noise and offer ability to
tell where sound is coming from better than traditional hearing aids.
Usually offered in the larger models.
Useful links for hard of hearing
www.hearingloss.org: National Web site for SHHH, Self Help for Hard
of Hearing People, which distributes a magazine on hearing issues to
members.
www.shhhca.org: California State Association of SHHH. Provides link
to more than 15 chapters in Southern California.
www.ddtp.org: Deaf and Disabled Telecommunications Program, mandated by
state Legislature and run by the state Public Utilities
Commission. Provides access to various telephone services for the
hard of hearing and deaf, among others.
www.leginfo.ca.gov: Links to California's SB 724, which would allow
Cal State Northridge to grant a clinical doctorate of audiology,
which will become the required degree for all American audiologists
in the next few years. There is currently only one audiology
doctorate program in the UC/Cal State system, and many fear that
there will be a severe shortage of audiologists in California once
the new standards are in place.
| |
| Bill M 2005-06-22, 5:52 pm |
| Quite a read. What is not mentioned is that colors are better now. Bill M
<HHIssues@aol.com> wrote in message
news:1119455263.318891.97490@g47g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
| |
| HHIssues@aol.com 2005-06-23, 8:58 am |
| Thanks
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