Hearing Aid
Styles
A wide
variety of hearing aid styles is available, and new
styles continue to be developed. Some styles are
more appropriate than others for particular hearing
patterns and communication needs.
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Open Fit
Open fit
hearing aids were introduced about 6 years ago,
and have grown in popularity due to their
discrete appearance and 'natural' sound.
Usually a thin tube or wire delivers sound from
a behind-the-ear hearing aid into the ear
canal. There is no custom ear piece to
plug up the ear canal, thus keeping the ear
canal 'open'.
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Recently,
Resound released a new style of open fit
hearing aid that keeps all the components in
the canal and the bowl of the ear, with no part
sitting behind the ear (see picture on left,
and their website be by
Resound). |
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Behind-The-Ear
(BTE)
The hearing aid sits
behind the ear and attaches via a clear
tube to a custom made earmold that sits in
the ear. This style can fit a wide range
of hearing loss, from mild to profound.
The BTE style is also a common choice for
children since only the custom earmold needs to
be changed as the ear grows, and not the
complete hearing aid.
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In-The-Ear
(ITE)
The hearing aid is
custom made to fit in the bowl of the
ear. Usually there is no problem fitting
a volume control and program button on this
size.
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Half Shell
(HS)
The hearing aid is
custom made to fit in part of the bowl of
the ear. Like the the larger ITE style,
usually a volume control and program button can
be fitted on this size.
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In-The-Canal
(ITC)
The hearing aid is
custom made to fit in the ear canal and
protrudes slightly into the bowl of the
ear. Often too small to accommodate a
volume control, some hearing aid companies
provide an optional remote control that can be
used to make volume and program
changes.
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Completely-In
-Canal
(CIC)
The hearing aid is
custom made to fit entirely in the ear
canal. Too small to accommodate a volume
control, some hearing aid manufacturers provide
an optional remote that can be used to make
volume and program changes. Usually
appropriate for mild to moderate hearing
loss. Some people have small ear canals
that do not have enough room for a CIC model
(these people can choose the slightly larger
ITC style).
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