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hearing aids for people with hearing loss

back to "New to Hearing Loss"

Hearing aids are one of the fundamental devices used by hard of hearing and late deafened people. They work by amplifying sound. There are many different types of hearing aids, each addressing particular needs. 

If you are interested in a general discussion one of the hearing aid types, please select the appropriate link below. If you would like information on a specific hearing aid, please see the Hearing Aid portion of our Resource Directory. 

Want to see what people think about the cost of hearing aids?

We believe EVERY hearing aid should include a telecoil. Here's more on this important technology.

For information on where in your area to buy a hearing aid, visit our Local Service Providers section.

Conventional (Acoustic) Hearing Aids (BTE, ITE, etc.)

Conduction Aids

Implantable Hearing Aids

Inexpensive Hearing Aids

Hearing Aid Tech Talk

Hearing Aid Industry

Unusual Hearing AIds

back to "New to Hearing Loss"

Conduction Aids

Conduction aids work by sending the acoustic energy through the bones of the skull. These aids are effective for some types of hearing loss. The functioning of the Hisonic aid is typical of bone conduction aids.

October 2005 - After several years with little public visibility, the HiSonic aid is back in the news!

September 2006 - Bone Conduction Research

January 2007 - Bone-anchored hearing aids suitable for young children

January 2007 - Baha Hearing System is Loud and Clear!

August 2007 - BAHA Treats Single Sided Deafness

December 2007 - The Hugh Hetherington On-line Hearing Aid Museum

April 2008 - To CROS, or not to CROS?

May 2008 - Loyola Study Confirms BAHA's Effectiveness

May 2008 - Bone Anchored Hearing Aids Work When Others Don't

June 2009 - Consumer Rights and Hearing Aids

July 2009 - Better hearing with bone conducted sound

July 2009 - Cochlear Unveils New Baha BP100 Processor

August 2009 - Australian Receives Cochlear's BP100 Bone Anchored Hearing Aid

August 2009 - Oticon Receives FDA Clearance for Bone Anchored Hearing System

October 2009 - Woman Eats Her Hearing Aid!

October 2009 - Cochlear(tm) Baha(r) BP100 and Current Issues in Bone Anchored Hearing Technology

October 2009 - HLAA Convention: BAHA: An Overview

October 2009 - Moisture Repellent Coating to Debut for Hearing Aids

October 2009 - Can Better Hearing Aids Help You Think Better?

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Misonix Takes Step Forward in Ultrasonic Hearing Aid Market

October 2005

Editor: Several years ago we reported on the HiSonic hearing aid, which caused quite a stir at the time. It is an ultrasonic, bone conduction aid that the manufacturers said could assist people with sensorineural hearing loss who did not benefit from conventional hearing aids. It was even suggested as a potential alternative to Cochlear Implants. (See http://www.hearinglossweb.com/res/ha/hisonic.htm)

Then the company and product seemed to just disappear, until now. A company called Misonix has apparently bought Sonic Innovations (HiSonic developer) and is working to commercialize the HiSonic product.

Here are portions of the press release.

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FARMINGDALE, N.Y., Oct. 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Misonix, Inc. (Nasdaq: MSON), a developer of ultrasonic medical device technology for the treatment of cancer and other healthcare purposes, today announced that it has contracted Ceres Biotechnology, LLC for services to assist in brining to market its ultrasonic medical devices for those with severe hearing impairment. These activities are an important element to Misonix's strategy for preparing for commercialization the products that had been in development by Hearing Innovations. As announced earlier this year and following its reorganization under Chapter 11, Hearing Innovations, a developmental company with patented HiSonic ultrasonic technology intended to alleviate profound deafness and tinnitus, became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Misonix.

Virginia-based Ceres Biotechnology has been contracted for an indefinite period expected to last approximately 18 months. Deliverables under the contract include professional consulting services for the development of technology, software programming, technical and product development engineering, selection of commercial partners, and the creation, testing and development of prototypes. As part of the contract, Ceres Biotechnology will conduct a clinical trail intended to prove efficacy. Ceres envisions the development of a multifunctional unit that will incorporate technologies addressing sensory processes essential for hearing and interpreting sound. The technology also will enable improved hearing by those less impaired, thus significantly expanding the addressable market.

[snip]

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Bone Conduction Research

 

September 2006

 

Dr. Manohar Bance has been looking for sweet spots in the human skull. What he finds could lead to a major technological breakthrough for people with certain hearing impairments and spinoffs that could change how you listen to your IPod or cellphone and even how soldiers communicate on the battlefield. Boosted by a $2.6-million grant from the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency’s Atlantic Innovation Fund, the team he leads has embarked on a five-year project to change the tools used to channel the vibrations of sound through the skull to nerves in the inner ear, allowing people to hear even if they lack critical parts of the ear.  Full Story

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Baha Hearing System is Loud and Clear!

January 2007

Jan. 5 felt like Christmas to Grace Williams. She was sitting in an exam room at the ENT Clinic of Iowa in West Des Moines when her doctor handed her a tan box about the size of a postage stamp. It was a new hearing device that processes sound through a titanium fixture that had been implanted in the bones of her head . . . . She tried placing the processor into the fixture behind her ear. She fumbled a couple of times, and her physician, Dr. Tim Simplot, stepped forward to help. Suddenly, her hearing had a clarity she had never known.  Full Story

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To CROS, or not to CROS?

April 2008

Profound sensorineural hearing loss in one ear only, sometimes called single-sided deafness, has numerous causes, including idiopathic sudden hearing loss and the removal of an acoustic tumor. Although single-sided deafness has generally been considered a minor inconvenience when compared to hearing loss in both ears, the ability to hear in one ear only presents a number of listening disadvantages. First, when the speaker is on the side of the non-hearing ear, the amplitude of high-frequency sounds critical for speech perception and understanding is reduced by as much as 20 dB SPL as they travel through and around the head to reach the hearing ear. This obstruction of sounds by the head, called the head-shadow effect, can also impair sound localization and distance estimation.  Second, the loss of hearing in one ear prevents the perceived doubling of loudness normally experienced through the binaural summation of sound energy coming into the two ears simultaneously.  Third, the ability to squelch background noises in favor of foreground speech is lost or diminished, making listening in noise especially difficult.   Full Story

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Bone Anchored Hearing Aids Work When Others Don't

May 2008

Bone-anchored hearing aids (BAHAs) have been used in the United States since receiving Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval in l996. BAHA is a registered trademark of Entific Medical Systems, a Swedish manufacturing company owned by Cochlear Limited. The bone-anchored aid is a surgically implantable system that works through direct bone stimulation.  According to the Maryland Hearing and Balance Center, "The baha consists of three parts: a titanium implant, an external abutment, and a sound processor. The system works by enhancing natural bone transmission as a pathway for sound to travel to the inner ear, bypassing the external auditory canal and the middle ear. The titanium implant is placed during a short surgical procedure and over time naturally integrates with the skull bone. For hearing, the sound processor transmits sound vibrations through the external abutment to the titanium implant. The vibrating implant sets up vibrations with the skull and inner ear that finally stimulate the nerve fibers of the inner ear, allowing hearing."  Full Story 

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Australian Receives Cochlear's BP100 Bone Anchored Hearing Aid

August 2009

On Friday Mr Hughes had tiny titanium screws drilled into bone behind each ear during a 90-minute operation under general anaesthetic. Once the wounds heal and the screws have fused with bone, abutments will be screwed into the implants, and the processors, about the size of a postage stamp, are clicked into place. Older-style hearing aids amplify all sounds, making it almost impossible for wearers to hear conversations in noisy environments. They also interfere with frequencies used by mobile and fixed phones and often emit high-pitched whistling sounds. But the newer processors, costing about $6000 each, shut out background noise, giving users up to 25 per cent better hearing, and can be attached directly to MP3 music players or wireless headsets for talking on the phone, Cochlear's territory manager, Katrina Martin, said. They were useful for people with congenitally blocked middle ears, chronic infections that had eaten away tiny bones in the middle ear used for sound conduction, or babies born with closed ear canals, she said.  Full Story

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Woman Eats Her Hearing Aid!

October 2009

"As I enjoyed the chocolate and caramel taste, it appeared that one of my Milk Duds was not as fresh as the others. One was rather crunchy and I could not get it to soften up, no matter how hard I tried." The transplanted Texan was puzzled. Finally, she removed the dud Dud from her mouth. She wanted to see what the problem was. "I found out." Apparently, as she had shifted into position on the bed, a hearing aid had fallen out of her ear and dropped right into the little box of candies. She couldn't have done that on purpose if she had tried. The hearing aid was now coated with chocolaty goodness.  Full Story

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Cochlear(tm) Baha(r) BP100 and Current Issues in Bone Anchored Hearing Technology

October 2009

The traditional indications for a bone anchored device like the Baha are similar to those for patients who would benefit from a traditional hearing aid or a traditional bone conduction transducer. The difference with Baha is that the patient has a condition that makes him or her unable to use a conventional device. The possible conditions include: patients with chronic ear infections, atresia of the ear canal, a patient who developed otitis externa with the use of traditional earmolds, and even patients who have nasopharyngeal carcinomas that require extensive radiation which lowers the patient's tolerance of an earmold within the ear canal. These patients traditionally have a conductive or mixed hearing loss, with bone conduction thresholds no greater than 35 to 45 dB HL and speech discrimination scores of 60% or better.  Full Story