The name is a little cheesy, but this small RIC (Receiver-In-Canal) hearing aid accommodates the latest in hearing technology, while providing a very comfortable hearing aid for its user. They are super light that you will forget that you’re even wearing it.

The Widex Passion have a program called Zen that plays random, non-repeated and infinite tones and chimes with no sudden changes in tonality or tempo. Great if you go birdwatching or hiking.

At the heart of Passion440 is the Dual Integrated Signal Processing (ISP) technology. Dual ISP doesn’t just analyse and process isolated sounds; it brings the details to life by creating a dynamic listening experience while giving you control of the preferences that suit you best.

I think the coolest feature is the SmartSpeak feature which actually uses recorded speech to inform you of various hearing aid functions, such as low battery power and program modes–SmartSpeak is available in over 20 languages.

If you want to check out Widex’s Passion 440, give us a call to help with your hearing aid questions & needs.

Hearing loss is usually stereotyped as an older person’s issue or disease.

The senior citizen cupping his hand to his ear and yelling “what did you say?” to the toaster is practically a cliché. It’s understandable, in a way – hearing does degenerate as you age.

But over half of the 36 million American hearing-loss sufferers are under the age of 65.

What options does a young hearing-loss sufferer have?

The Nios Micro, the world’s most technologically advanced pediatric hearing aid. This hearing aid comes with SoundRecover (especially helpful because fellow children’s voices tend to be higher pitched),  RealEar Sound, and WhistleBlock technology.

Depending on the model, it can also come with a wide variety of other features, including Voice Zoom, for speech intelligibility, and NoiseBlock processing, which filters out background noise in a way that even healthy ears can’t.

As a bonus, it comes in 13 (!) different styles. Even a picky child can find the right one for themselves.

Hearing loss isn’t just for the old. If you think your child might be suffering from it, do not hesitate to visit an audiologist, or give us a call–we’ll be happy to answer any questions.

With all of the fascinating technology being developed on a near-daily basis, hearing aids seem – and have become – thoroughly modern devices. However, the history of hearing aids stretches back several decades, to a brilliant physicist and author named Harvey Fletcher.

Fletcher’s prototypical hearing aids were worn on the body, and consisted of an ear mold connected to a case about the size of a deck of playing cards. This case was connected to the mold via a loop, and attached to the belt or pocket of the wearer. Because of their great size, they were capable of great feats of amplification; through their bulkiness and unwieldiness they have been replaced  by “behind the ear” hearing aids. Still, for the time, they represented a watershed moment in hearing amplification.

Behind-the-ear (BTE) hearing aids are tubes that wrap, fittingly enough, behind the ear of the hearing loss sufferer. They provide sound through air conduction through this length of tubing. Because they keep the ear open, they allow the user to retain use of whatever hearing they have left, and are therefore appropriate for those with mild-to-moderate hearing loss.

Hearing  aid technology progressed further with the development of In-The-Ear (ITE) hearing aids. These devices go directly into the ear canal. Further advancements have created digital hearing aids that are programmable and can come with a number of exciting and helpful accessories.

Even less obtrusive in every-day conversation are implantable hearing aids. These aids can be implanted directly into the bone of people who suffer from hearing loss, in a procedure that can be recovered from in mere hours. Extended-wear hearing aids have also been introduced, allowing hearing loss sufferers to hear clearly on a daily basis without worrying about taking an aid in or out frequently.

The history of hearing aids is fascinating, and ever changing. The sheer amount of accumulated knowledge that has resulted in the modern class of hearing loss technology is astounding.

Attractive. Easy-to use. Functional.

Those are the hallmark qualities of Unitron hearing aids. Unitron employs purpose-driven technology to promote clearer, easier hearing. What sets Unitron apart is the range of dynamic features it offers:

• DuoLink, which assures that sound stimuli are heard in both ears
• UDirect, which assures functionality with Bluetooth devices
• Cable-Free Programming
• Noise-Reduction
• Anti-Shock

Perhaps what’s most exciting about the Unitron Passport hearing aids is the endless number of ways you can make them yours.  Smart Control allows you to adjust the parameters  to what you need. Not only that, but the addition of Self-Learning means that the aid gradually and intelligently begins to adapt to what you need without your even needing to program it.

The way it blends with a high level of functionality makes the Unitron Passport an excellent choice in hearing aids.

Why not?

One study indicated that 25% of people that rejected hearing aids did so because the felt like those hearing aids did a poor job in eliminating background noise.  This rejection of potentially helpful hearing aid technology was one of the impetuses for a recently concluded three-year double-blind study to test the real-world benefit of directional hearing aids.

Ninety-four subjects, all previous users of omni-directional hearing aids were fit with directional hearing aids for a month, followed by omnidirectional hearing aids for a month. For each hearing aid, they were given objective and subjective hearing tests and asked to respond on their experience.

The data showed that while subjective testing failed to produce a clear preference, directional hearing aids fared notably better in objective hearing tests.

A significant conclusion can be drawn from the test that the use of directional microphones in hearing aids can help users identify speech-in-noise. Identifying speech-in-noise is one of the primary concerns for any wearer of a hearing-aid; it is what allows the user of the aid to distinguish between the clattering of dishes and the funny story of a coworker.

This study helps show the vast improvements and the brilliant science going into hearing aid technology.

But can hearing aids help save the economy?

That’s what a UF professor whose work helped develop the project is saying.  Alice Holmes, a professor in UF’s Department of Communicative Disorders at the College of Public Health and Health Professions, has worked with other UF researchers to pioneer a new type of hearing aid.

This hearing aid is programmed not to the tonal beeps of past hearing aids, but rather to be responsive to speech sounds such as “ata” and “aba.”

It is Holmes’ contention that many people, especially in an older state like Florida, are prematurely forced out of the workforce by poor hearing. A scant 20 percent of the 31 million Americans with hearing loss that could be benefited by the use of an aid actually take advantage of hearing aid technology, some no doubt frustrated by ill-fitting or unhelpful hearing aids.

Furthermore, by allowing hearing aids to be programmed more quickly and efficiently, the new technology hopes not only provide a lifestyle benefit to the patients, but an economic boon to the audiology clinics. Hearing loss ranks second to only arthritis as a permanent disability in the older community, Holmes says.

As hearing aid technology gets better, and better, we continue to reap benefits. This additional potential boost to the economy is a welcome one.

Hearing loss, especially in a large, busy city, can negatively affect your ability to properly react to dangerous elements.

So why are people so hesitant to get hearing aids?

A variety of reasons:

>>Hearing aids can be bulky.

>>Hearing aids can be unseemly.

>>Hearing aids can be a hassle–where’s the guarantee that when it comes to a crowded party or loud restaurant? Will these hearing aids even work properly?

Enter the Audéo SMART, the world’s smallest hearing system with full wireless functionality.

It’s a small, compact, discreet hearing aid that uses wireless functionality to ensure that you can hear properly no matter what the circumstance is. Wirelessness in hearing aids is a fairly new development that allows you to adjust your aid to the environment. You can even use them in conjunction with a wireless microphone–no more frustrated yelling over too-loud music.

The Audéo SMART is also highly customizable. It comes in 11 colors and 3 different strengths depending on your need and budget:

>>The SMART IX is a high-end CRT (canal receiver technology) hearing solution, for those that demand the best out of their hearing aids. It incorporates the latest innovations in hearing aid techonology.

>>The midrange SMART  allows flexible control with high-performance and includes SoundFlow advanced.

>>Finally, the SMART III proves that hearing aids don’t have to destroy your wallet, combining the freedom of wireless connectivity with SoundFlow Standard.

The Audéo SMART is a highly exciting advance in hearing aid technology. Flexibility, Freedom, Value: this line truly represents the vanguard of instruments fighting hearing loss.

Hearing aids are like other medical products used to assist anyone who has a disability. To make a comparison,  you don’t always need a prescription from a doctor to buy your medicine and sometimes can get what your looking for over the counter–this is now happening in the world of hearing aids.

The question we need to really ask ourselves as well as other hearing professionals is, it a good idea to buy a hearing aid without having it properly  made to one’s degree of hearing loss? Anyone who gets a hearing aid or is thinking of getting one should first see an audiologist to see what the best option would be.

The audiologist will first test your hearing to see if there is any hearing loss–and how strong it has become. If necessary, the audiologist will then recommend whether or not you should get a hearing aid. This is extremely important. If someone buys a hearing aid without seeing an audiologist beforehand, one of two outcomes will result–both of which are negative and will only hurt the patient in need.

The first possible outcome is that the hearing aid would be too weak. As a result, it would  not only be a waste of your money, but the patient’s  hearing would not improve as a result. The second outcome is that could be too strong of a hearing aid. This would be disastrous. If it is too powerful it would cause noise induced hearing loss. This hearing loss is irreversible and will never be restored to what it once was.

An audiologist suggesting a custom hearing aid benefits the patient and at time hearing loss could be fixed without the use of a hearing aid depending on the type of hearing loss.

So getting a custom hearing aids with assistance from an audiologist is the best practice. Every individual has different levels of hearing loss. When it comes to hearing aids, see an audiologist to get help with your hearing problems, don’t take the cheap way out and damage it.

Well, there is good news, your hearing aid has a special built-in feature that you may not have known about called the telecoil (aka t-coil). Telecoils were created to help in the use of phones for people who suffer hearing loss. Let’s take a look at some of the details:

• Telephones tranmit small magnetic fields–it is not a problem if you have healthy hearing, but it can cause heavy feedback if you use a hearing aid.

• The telecoil now comes into use. It is a small electro-magnetic copper wire inside the hearing aid that once turned on, creates its own magnetic field dirupting the phone’s magnetic field.

• This make it easier to hear what is on the phone–focusing on the phone call and reducing the surrounding noise.

• Now, you can have a conversation with your new hearing aid and not have to worry about constant feedback.

The telecoil is really a great technological innovation in the world of hearing aids and the fight against hearing loss. One major advantage of a using a telecoil is that you can turn off your normal hearing aid microphone, and thus, not hear all the noise that might be around you. You only hear the magnetic signal, which doesn’t include all that noise, so you can hear it a lot better. In the United States, it is not too well known but next time you see your audiologist or want to buy a hearing aid, ask about the telecoil–especially now that laws like the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), many public accommodations such as movie theaters, theaters, auditoriums, and sports stadiums provide Assistive Listening Systems (ALSs), which may include headsets or receivers loaned to patrons to help them hear.

1) It receives the sounds which it receives from the microphone in the hearing aid, which then turns into binary code.

2) The binary code is deciphered and determines what the sounds are.

3) Once this is complete, it then amplifies the sounds accordingly as to not be too loud or too low.

One question people often ask is about feedback–how strong is it? The digital hearing aid actually minimizes the feedback received through a noise distinction process. Sound recognition is also a feature that has helped make the digital hearing aid the dominant hearing aid of the last five years. Before, analog hearing aids just amplified all the sounds and would cause much higher feedback noises. On the contrary, digital hearing aids actually adjust to distinguish different sounds so while it does have some feedback, it’s  minimal.

Digital hearing aids have setting which the user can program–ideal for traveling since it can more easily adjust to the environment and new surroundings. It is no wonder why digital hearing aids are dominating the market–combating hearing loss, but that doesn’t mean analog hearing aids are gone. Realistically, they are more difficult to find and less patients use them–within a few years they will be completely off the markets.