How to Select a Hearing Aid

Did you know hearing aids come in different styles? Are you familiar with the different types of hearing technology available to you if you have hearing loss? 

Just as you wear hiking boots to climb a mountain and running shoes on a jog; there are different types of hearing aids designed for specific jobs. To get the most out of a hearing device, choose the model best suited to your needs.

Your audiologist will help fine-tune the selection, drilling down through the pros and cons of individual manufacturers and models. But you’ll find it a help to have a basic grasp of the overall options before you visit their office. 

Hearing aid features

Consider your priorities and what you want from the device. Some suggestions to get you started are:

• Discretion: Does it matter to you if people know you’re wearing a device or would you prefer it to be near invisible?
• Ease of fitting: How able are you to cope with miniaturization and small buttons or would you prefer to compromise on size against ease of adjustment?
• Power: How much is amplification of power a priority; for example if your hearing loss is mild then you might prefer a less powerful, but smaller model.
• Robustness: Consider your lifestyle and what activities like. If your hearing device is going to be put through a squash game you may need a more rugged model.
• Waterproof: If you swim or take part in outdoor sports you may want to consider a waterproof device.
• The above questions will help you build a picture of what size device, how powerful and any special features it must have. This will help you decide which style is best suited to your needs. In addition, consider the placement of the hearing aid and work with your audiologist to determine which style is more suited to your needs.

Styles of hearing aids

• Behind the Ear (BTE): The body of the hearing device that contains the microphones and the amplifier sits neatly behind the ear. The size of the body depends on the power of the amplification and comes in a variety of sizes available. There are also models with customization that allows you to accessorize or match the device to your favorite color or animal print. These devices are suited to all levels of hearing loss, including severe.
• Receiver in the Ear (RITE): The loudspeaker part of the device sits within the ear and reduces the size of the casing outside of the ear, making it more discrete. These devices are generally easy to fit and suitable even if you find tasks requiring small movements awkward.
• In the Ear (ITE): These are the most discrete devices because they sit within the ear canal. These miniaturized devices are extremely discrete and some models are near invisible.

Having an idea of what you want from a device enables you to get the most from your audiologist, whose in-depth knowledge can then help you select the exact specifications best suited to your hearing needs.