Hearing Aids

There are no hearing aids that are only for children, but there are hearing aids with features that suit children especially well. These include, among others:

• Flexibility in gain and output
• Multiple frequency band programmability
• Capability to connect to FM and other external devices such as iPods and cellular telephones
• Feedback control
• Choice of colors
• Standard extended warranties

Our audiologists at MESIARC have a number of tools at their disposal to assure appropriate hearing aid fittings. Measurements can be made of individual ear canal resonance or estimated from well researched averages, gain and output characteristics can be selected to match targets most appropriate for children.

Hearing aid fitting in babies requires specific expertise. We at MESIARC realize that the amount of power appropriate for a particular hearing loss is different in small babies than in adults, and it will change as the baby grows. So the audiologist must see the baby frequently and make changes to hearing aid programming based on the baby’s ear canal size and as more specific information is gathered about the baby’s behavioral hearing thresholds.

Virtually all hearing aids are now digital signal processors that can be programmed to closely suit individual hearing losses. It is important to understand, though, that no hearing aids “correct” hearing to normal, and that children with hearing aids still do not hear well in all circumstances. Depending on the degree and configuration of the hearing loss, hearing aids may provide access to sounds all across the speech range, or they may provide access only the low frequencies with minimal benefit in the high frequencies. In some cases there is not enough measurable hearing for hearing aids to provide any significant benefit.

We at MESIARC realize difference between “hearing” and “understanding” hearing aids can make sounds in different frequency ranges audible but cannot guarantee the user will be able to understand speech clearly. So even the best hearing aid fittings cannot stand alone; expert therapy and a strong educational program will be essential to success.

YOU as parents are a very, very important component in your child’s success, and every moment you are with him or her is a teachable moment. Your child’s teachers and therapists will help you to learn the most effective ways to work with your child at home.