Hearing loss in the United States affects approximately 32 million people. Out of this 32 million people, research studies have shown that more than 24 million people in the United States have never tried hearing aids as a solution to their hearing loss.With the rapid changes in hearing aid technology over the past few years, it has become easier to fit patients with hearing aids and meet their communicational needs.
Hearing loss, if left untreated, can create a wall between you and the ones you care about. It may cause you to gradually avoid the people and places that once brought you joy. Use of hearing instruments can bring you back in touch with the important things in life.
Hearing devices have come a long way. They are nothing like your grandparents’ hearing aids. Hearing instruments are essentially miniature computers that are programmed to meet your individual needs. Advanced hearing aid technology now has given a greater emphasis to speech, and provides improved comfort and understanding in difficult listening situations. In fact, some of the high-end digital aids have the ability to communicate with each other so instruments are working together as a hearing system rather than two individual hearing aids.They automatically adapt to the changes in your environment, making manual adjustments a thing of the past.Advances have been made to cosmetics as well; most people will not even know you have a hearing aid in your ear unless you tell them.
There are times hearing aids may not meet all your listening needs, which is why we have assistive listening devices.Assistive listening devices are items such as amplified telephones or infrared systems for the television, to name a few. Some of today’s hearing devices now have the ability to connect wirelessly to cell phones, television, telephones and other electronic devices via blue tooth technology.
Don’t let life pass you by because of a hearing loss.As mentioned above, hearing aid technology has come a long way.These changes are now making it feasible for people to hear and communicate with their friends, coworkers and family members in environments they never once thought were possible.
Dr.Adams is an audiologist who practices at Advanced Otolaryngology Associates in East Brunswick. For more information, call 732-613-0600.