Things to note when choosing hearing aids for adults

Hearing aids on the market are divided into several types: box type, behind-the-ear type, in-the-ear type, and ear canal type.
1. Box-type hearing aids are also called pocket-type or pocket-type. They are slightly larger than a matchbox. The body and the earphones are connected by wires. When in use, the earphones are inserted into the external ear canal and the box is placed in the chest pocket. Its advantages are less interference, greater power, easy to use, easy to adjust, long use time, and low price, which can meet the needs of people with severe deafness. However, this kind of hearing aid box will produce friction noise when placed in the pocket, affecting language discrimination. It is very conspicuous when worn, so sometimes it feels inconvenient.
2. The appearance of the behind-the-ear hearing aid is a 3-4 cm long curved hook. It is placed behind the auricle and sends the sound into the ear canal through a horn-shaped ear hook and a plastic tube. Its advantages are no wires, small size, more concealed, less interference, and can be equipped with an induction coil to increase the function of listening to the phone. The disadvantages are that a special ear mold is required, which is not easy to get used to at first use and is not easy to adjust.
3. In-ear and ear canal hearing aids are small hearing aids with the advantages of being small, concealed, wire-free, no need to make ear molds, good hearing effects, and can improve hearing; but they are inconvenient to adjust and expensive, and need to be customized according to each person's ear canal and concha cavity. Due to its low power, it is only suitable for moderate deafness and is not suitable for severe and extremely severe deafness.
When choosing a hearing aid, it is best to go to the hospital for a comprehensive hearing examination, use electrical audiometry and other instruments to accurately evaluate the degree of deafness, and then choose a hearing aid. If there is no hospital with corresponding conditions in the local area, the degree of hearing loss and the selection of hearing aid power can be estimated according to oral tests. For example, people who cannot hear whispers have a hearing loss of 30 to 40 decibels, and people who cannot hear soft voices have a hearing loss of about 40 to 50 decibels. At this time, it is advisable to purchase low-power and medium-power hearing aids; people who cannot hear ordinary speech have a hearing loss of about 50 to 60 decibels, and people who cannot hear loud speech have a hearing loss of 60 to 70 decibels. They can choose medium-power and high-power hearing aids; people who cannot hear loud shouts have a hearing loss of 70 to 80 decibels, so they can choose medium- and high-power hearing aids; people who cannot hear full-force shouts have a hearing loss of about 80 to 90 decibels or higher, so they can choose high-power and extra-high-power hearing aids.