Shin Ja-young, medical report reporter
In 2020, the proportion of the elderly population aged 65 or older reached 16.4%. With analysis predicting that the number will increase to 24.1% by 2025, the number of patients with hearing loss is also expected to continue to increase in the future. At the same time, demand for hearing aids is expected to increase. However, many people fail to wear hearing aids due to incorrect product selection or management. According to a statistical survey conducted on people with hearing loss in Korea, the most common reason for not wearing hearing aids was discomfort in wearing them (49.1%).
Park Hyuk-soon, an audiologist at Hearing Hub Daegu Center, said, “For smooth listening in a noisy environment, there must be sufficient high-frequency energy.” Otherwise, you may not be able to distinguish speech sounds even if you wear a hearing aid. Additionally, audiologist Park said, “It is best to get help from an experienced hearing aid expert for precise fitting.” /Provided by Hearing Hub
◇For optimal hearing aid use, choose the hearing aid that is right for you.
Before using a hearing aid, it is basic to perform a pure tone hearing test, bone conduction hearing test, and speech recognition test (WRS) using a hearing test device that undergoes periodic test sound calibration in a soundproof room. By conducting a sound field test while wearing a hearing aid, you can train speech discrimination in a multi-noise environment that is difficult for people with hearing loss and provide VSE (Virtual Acoustic Environment) fitting to improve your ability to achieve the optimal hearing aid fit. .
Recently, artificial intelligence (AI) hearing aids that mimic the human sound listening process were released. This is suitable for young adults or people with hearing loss who have difficulty hearing in noisy environments. With the launch of AI hearing aids, the gap between sound and speech is effectively reduced. This efficiently controls background noise like the human brain, and the hearing aid learns on its own through machine learning technology, making it optimized for personal hearing life.
If you deal with complex and diverse people or have a wide social circle, we recommend Oticon’s Real hearing aid, which is the first hearing aid to use deep neural network (DNN) technology. You can also use Phonak’s AudeoLumity, which is equipped with AutoSense 5.0, which improves the clarity of speech in noise and creates an optimal acoustic environment by scanning the sound situation around the wearer. If you are undergoing tinnitus rehabilitation, you can use Widex’s Moment Sheer, which has a tinnitus rehabilitation therapy sound, to promote tinnitus rehabilitation along with hearing loss. As many hearing aids incorporating the latest technology are on the market, you should find a hearing aid that is right for you through an accurate hearing test and sufficient consultation from a hearing expert.
Audiologist Park explains the direction of sound to a patient with hearing loss. In addition to Korean custom fitting, Hearing Hub also applies the VSE virtual sound fitting system. /Provided by Hearing Hub
◇To maximize performance, patient-specific fitting is also essential.
Hearing Hub Daegu Center audiologist Park Hyeok-soon advises, “Sufficient amplification of the speech range is necessary for smooth listening under noise,” and “there must be sufficient high-frequency energy.” Otherwise, even if you wear a hearing aid, you may have great difficulty distinguishing speech sounds. For people with age-related hearing loss or hearing loss in noisy surroundings who have poor word recognition, it is recommended to strengthen consonant components using frequency lowering and perform optimization fitting. Fitting is the most important process that determines hearing aid performance. Hearing aids are semi-finished products, so only the devices are imported from abroad, and it is entirely up to a hearing expert to wear them according to your hearing and situation. After wearing the hearing aid, you must visit regularly for fitting, and you must visit the hearing center at least 20 times on average over the 4 to 5 years of using the hearing aid to receive sound management. Audiologist Park said, “For people with sensorineural hearing loss, their discrimination ability to understand language decreases by more than 10% with just 1 dB less listening, so for precise fitting, the VSE virtual acoustic environment fitting system should be used to improve the direction of sound and speech discrimination ability in noise.” He said.
Hearing Hub is currently holding special offers on the latest high-performance products from 6 major brands at 9 branches nationwide. If you have a hearing impairment rating, you can receive a refund of up to 1.31 million won when purchasing a product specifically for the hearing impaired from the National Health Insurance Corporation. For more information, please call Hearing Hub Daegu Center at 053-754-3008.
2024-01-08 18:07:29
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