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Hearing Aids and Tinnitus: A Comprehensive Approach to Relief
The constant disruption of tinnitus can leave you struggling to focus at work, enjoy quiet moments, or get a good night's sleep. Many people find themselves avoiding social situations, feeling stressed, and experiencing anxiety due to these persistent sounds. The impact on daily life can be profound, but recent advances in hearing aid technology have created promising solutions for managing these challenging symptoms.
Understanding Tinnitus and Hearing Loss
Tinnitus and hearing loss frequently occur together, though one can exist without the other. When hearing loss develops, the brain often becomes more sensitive to internal sounds as it attempts to compensate for reduced auditory input. This increased sensitivity can intensify tinnitus symptoms. By addressing both conditions simultaneously through advanced hearing aids, many patients experience meaningful improvement in their quality of life.
The Science Behind Hearing Aids and Tinnitus Relief
Modern hearing aids work through several mechanisms to reduce tinnitus symptoms:
Sound Masking
By amplifying environmental sounds, hearing aids help mask the internal sounds of tinnitus. This makes the tinnitus less noticeable during daily activities.
Brain Retraining
Increased auditory input from hearing aids helps redirect the brain's attention to external sounds rather than internal tinnitus signals. This neuroplastic adaptation can lead to reduced tinnitus perception over time.
Stress Reduction
When hearing becomes easier, the mental strain of listening decreases. This reduction in cognitive load and stress often leads to less pronounced tinnitus symptoms.
Specialized Programs
Built-in tinnitus management features provide additional tools for symptom relief throughout the day.
Advanced Hearing Aid Options for Tinnitus Management
Our practice offers several cutting-edge hearing aid models with sophisticated tinnitus management capabilities:
Oticon Intent
The Intent's Tinnitus SoundSupport system provides customizable background sounds that can be adjusted to match your comfort level. Its advanced sound processing ensures clear amplification of environmental sounds, creating natural tinnitus masking throughout your day.
ReSound Nexia
The Nexia incorporates comprehensive Tinnitus Therapy features. Users can select and precisely adjust calming sounds to match their specific tinnitus pitch. Built-in connectivity allows direct streaming of soothing sounds from smartphones, expanding your tinnitus management options.
Phonak Infinio
This model's Tinnitus Balance feature includes an adjustable noise generator for sound enrichment. The Infinio's AutoSense OS 6.0 automatically optimizes settings as your listening environment changes, maintaining consistent tinnitus relief throughout the day. This adaptation is particularly beneficial in quiet situations when tinnitus often becomes more noticeable.
Signia IX
The IX model features innovative Notch Therapy technology. This unique approach amplifies sounds except at the specific frequency of your tinnitus, potentially reducing its perceived intensity over time. Traditional sound therapy options complement this targeted approach, providing comprehensive tinnitus management.
Starkey Genesis AI
The Genesis AI combines artificial intelligence with advanced tinnitus management. Its Multiflex Tinnitus Technology offers customizable sound therapy through an intuitive smartphone app. The system learns from your preferences over time, creating an increasingly personalized tinnitus management experience.
Our Comprehensive Treatment Approach
At Southwest Balance, we recognize that effective tinnitus management requires more than just technology. Our process includes:
Detailed Evaluation
We begin with comprehensive hearing testing and tinnitus assessment to understand your specific symptoms and needs. This evaluation helps us identify the most effective treatment approach for your situation.
Precise Fitting
Using Real-Ear Measurements, we verify that your hearing aids provide appropriate amplification across all frequencies. This precise fitting is crucial for both hearing enhancement and tinnitus management.
Personalized Programming
We carefully program your hearing aids to address both hearing and tinnitus needs, ensuring optimal relief. Regular adjustments maintain effectiveness as your needs change.
Ongoing Support
Our team provides continued support and fine-tuning to ensure your tinnitus management strategy remains effective long-term.
Supporting Management Strategies
While hearing aids play a central role in tinnitus management, we often recommend complementary approaches:
Sound Therapy
Additional sound therapy techniques can supplement your hearing aids' built-in features, providing relief in specific situations.
Stress Management
Simple relaxation techniques can enhance the benefits of your hearing aids, particularly during high-stress periods when tinnitus often becomes more noticeable.
Lifestyle Modifications
Small changes in diet, exercise, or sleep habits can support your overall tinnitus management plan.
The Importance of Professional Fitting
While over-the-counter devices offer convenience, they typically lack the specialized features found in prescription hearing aids designed for tinnitus relief. Our audiologists use precise fitting techniques and Real-Ear Measurements to ensure your devices provide optimal benefit for both hearing and tinnitus management.
Common Questions About Tinnitus and Hearing Aids
Will hearing aids increase my tinnitus?
Properly fitted hearing aids should not worsen tinnitus. Most patients experience significant symptom relief.
How long until I notice improvement?
Response times vary. Some patients notice immediate relief, while others may need several weeks to experience significant changes.
What if my hearing test is normal?
Even with normal hearing, the tinnitus management features in modern hearing aids can provide substantial benefit.
Patient Success Stories
Many of our patients have achieved significant tinnitus relief using these advanced devices. One patient using the Phonak Infinio with Tinnitus Balance reported dramatically reduced tinnitus awareness within weeks of fitting. Another found that the Signia IX's Notch Therapy helped minimize tinnitus interference with sleep and daily activities.
The Role of Professional Care
Professional audiological care makes a significant difference in tinnitus management success. Our team stays current with the latest tinnitus research and treatment options, ensuring you receive the most effective care possible. Regular follow-up appointments allow us to fine-tune your devices and adjust your management strategy as needed.
Schedule Your Tinnitus Evaluation
Living with tinnitus doesn't mean you have to accept its impact on your daily life. At Southwest Balance, Dizziness & Ear Institute, our experienced audiologists are ready to help you explore the latest hearing aid technology for tinnitus relief. We'll work with you to develop a personalized management plan using advanced devices and proven techniques. Call our Phoenix office at (602) 265-9000 to schedule your comprehensive tinnitus evaluation.
Latest Articles
Hearing Loss: Types of Hearing Impairments Explained
Hearing loss takes several forms—and each is affected by the ears several pathways. If you’re experiencing hearing loss, a little knowledge can go a long way. Being able to classify different types of hearing loss is important, and understanding different causes can assist treatment methods.Take a look at the following types of hearing loss. While each is caused by different factors, each should be noted by yourself and an audiologist to maintain your hearing health.
Conductive Hearing Loss
When your middle and inner ear face obstructions, your hearing may suffer. Conductive hearing loss occurs when a condition interferes with your ear’s basic transmissions. In short: Your ear can’t carry sound waves well.Fortunately, conductive hearing loss is incredibly treatable. When sound waves can’t be transmitted effectively, medical or surgical assistance can benefit you. Additionally, if these methods aren’t working, a hearing aid is entirely useful for amplifying dulled sound waves.
Sensorineural Hearing Loss
When sensorineural hearing loss occurs, the inner ear may be damaged. Additionally the acoustic nerve may be suffering damage. When “nerve deafness” occurs, the ear’s cochlea—responsible for relaying noise vibrations to your inner-ear’s main nerve—have difficulty transmitting sounds.Sensorineural hearing loss can occur from a variety of impairments. While sensorineural hearing restoration is difficult, several cases may be remedied. A lot of research pertaining to sensorineural hearing loss is still needed, though new, innovative treatments are likely.
Central Hearing Loss
Central hearing loss occurs when the central nervous system has difficulty interpreting sounds. Not entirely connected to the ear’s main functions, central hearing loss is closely related to one’s ability to perceive speech, understand cues and decode audible information.If you have difficulty hearing during multiple conversations—or, if you’ve experienced difficulty studying with surrounding noise, minor central hearing loss may be at play. Fortunately, routine hearing tests are available, and maintaining daily functions is possible if you encounter central hearing loss.
Functional Hearing Loss
Psychological and emotional problems underline functional hearing loss. When functional hearing loss occurs, the individual actually perceives surrounding noises—though they may appear oblivious. Functional hearing loss occurs for a variety of reasons, and physician discussion is urged if you suspect functional hearing loss.Unfortunately, functional hearing loss is rarely recognized, as cognitive and emotional elements may be blocking one’s ability to understand their impairment. Functional hearing loss normally requires hearing therapy, and it may not be discovered until a full hearing exam is administered
Mixed Hearing Loss
The world isn’t black and white, and hearing loss isn’t either! If you’re experiencing several hearing loss symptoms, you may be experiencing more than one type of hearing loss. When this occurs, mixed hearing loss is responsible for both sensorineural and conductive hearing loss.While mixed hearing loss is, as implied, mixed, your potential treatments needn’t be overly complex. Mixed hearing loss is simply a collection of “cause and effect” relationships, and figuring out one type of hearing loss may reveal information about other symptoms.
Is Hearing Loss Transferred from Parent to Child?
Can hearing loss be coded into your genes? Quite simply, the answer is “Yes.” In fact, industry professionals agree that most hearing loss is caused by some kind of genetic abnormality. Additionally, developmental experts consider genetic hearing loss to be the most frequently occurring birth defect in developed countries.Genes, DNA & families. Genes are basically bits of code that make up our DNA and tell our bodies how to function and how to look. Researchers have discovered over 100 genes that can negatively affect hearing. Hearing loss can result from any one of these genes being absent or modified. Parent genes are passed to children, so any abnormal gene sequences which cause hearing loss are handed down.Categories of genetic hearing loss. Inherited hearing loss can affect the outer ear, inner ear or both. The hearing loss can be sensorineural, conductive or mixed. Besides that, some genes result in hearing loss before a child learns to talk (prelingual hearing loss), and other genes cause hearing problems that appear after speech is learned (postlingual hearing loss). One of the more common conditions to affect hearing is Usher syndrome, a condition that is believed to affect over half of deaf-blind individuals as reported by the National Institutes of Health. Waardenburg syndrome is another common disorder that affects hearing in the inner ear but also causes pale skin, a streak of white hair, and light or multi-colored eyes.What’s the good news? Fortunately, hearing loss is not automatically passed from parent to child. The genes that contribute to hearing loss are typically recessive and therefore often don’t lead to any outward symptoms because the child has received a normal copy from the other parent. It is not unusual for the children of hearing impaired parents to have normal hearing. Since there are hundreds of genes associated with hearing, it is much more likely than not that the parental hearing losses don’t share the same cause. Individuals concerned with hereditary hearing loss can see a doctor for genetic testing that can help identify risks.
What are the causes of hearing loss?
The term “hearing loss” is wide, varied and sometimes vague. Many people experience hearing loss, and not all hearing loss completely removes one’s ability to perceive sound. Adult hearing loss can result from inheritance, or, it may occur due to an illness. Loud noise, chemical exposure and simple aging all promote hearing loss, though understanding different causes is important.If you or a loved one is experiencing ringing or reduced hearing, contacting an Audiologist is important. Understanding the causes of hearing loss can help you determine preventative measures. More importantly, it’s the first step to acquiring adequate assistance. Take a look at the following causes for hearing loss. While different in many ways, they’re all relevant to your—and your loved ones’—hearing health:
Physical Injury
Sometimes, basic damage can reduce one’s hearing ability. Fractures, eardrum damage, ear damage and interior ear injuries result in hearing loss. If you’ve noticed lapsed hearing following a head injury, resulting hearing loss may occur.
Drugs and other Chemicals
If you’ve used over-the-counter drugs and other medications, your hearing loss may be attributed to chemical consumption. If a drug is “ototoxic”, it’s dangerous to one’s hearing. The following drugs are considered to be ototoxic, and they may be responsible for your reduced hearing ability:
- Asiprin
- Chemotherapy medication, including carboplatin, cisplatin and nitrogen mustard
- Aminoglycoside antibiotics, including neomycin, streptomycin and kanamycin
Age
Sometimes, one’s hearing “just goes” with age. “Presbycusis”, or age-related hearing loss, results from your inner ear’s reduction in nerves. Age-related hearing loss can be subtle. It can also be severe. In all cases, age-related hearing loss is permanent—though options do exist, so don’t worry! Hearing aids are a common remedy for age-related hearing loss.
Ear Wax
A benign cause of hearing loss, accumulated ear wax is easily removable with help of a physician. If you’ve been around exposed grease, high-debris areas and other pollutants, your ear’s wax may have thickened. It may have been overproduced, too.When this happens, your ear’s wax cuts off your inner ear’s ability to perceive sound. Often, hearing loss attributed to ear wax build-up happens within a short span of time. If you haven’t had an infection, and if you haven’t been injured, ear wax overproduction is a likely culprit.
Loud Noises
You’ve probably heard the iconic, “Don’t listen to loud music, or you’ll lose your hearing!” Cliché statements are cliché for a reason, and hearing loss attributed to loud noises is fairly common. If you’re having difficulty hearing, and if you’ve been exposed to loud music, construction areas, vehicles and other catalysts, your difficulties may be a product of noise-induced hearing loss.Noised-induced hearing loss damages your inner ear’s hair cells—reducing your overall hearing abilities. Normally, this hearing loss develops gradually, though sudden, loud noises may immediately damage your hearing. In later cases, “acoustic trauma” results. Immediate medical attention is necessary.In all cases, however, medical assistance is urged. Hearing loss can happen at any time for many reasons. In many cases, the best cure rests within preventative methods. Remember to take care of your ears, your environment and your hearing health.
Signs of hearing loss
Hearing loss is caused by a variety of factors. Some are blatant, and others are subtle. Aging, exposure to loud noises and other factors contribute to hearing loss, and even genetics may play an integral role in auditory degradation. If you’re wondering about your ear health, be sure to check for the following symptoms of hearing loss:
You Ask Others to Repeat Themselves Frequently
Of course, asking for repeated sentences, phrases and technical information shouldn’t cause concern. But, if you frequently need repeated sentences for clarity, a hearing check-up is advised. Needing repeated words is a primary hearing loss symptom, and reading lips should never be a substitute for medical inquiry.
You’re Missing Phone Calls and Door Knocks
Hearing loss begins with acute isolation, and small noises may go first. If you’re having difficulty noticing the phone, the doorbell, knocks and small noises, your hearing may be in trouble. While the phone can be set on vibrate, and, while visitors can be encouraged to “just come in”, lapses in hearing shouldn’t control your day-to-day visits.
You’re Talking Louder
Everyone has different temperaments, but if your friends and family are saying, “You’re talking louder than normal,” you may need a hearing exam. When people suffer hearing loss, they instinctively talk louder to accommodate for their lost head voice. In short: If you can’t hear yourself talk, you may accidentally be talking louder to compensate.
You Have Difficulty Hearing Women and Children
Women and children speak in higher tones, and these tones are often lost first when one’s hearing degrades. Again, hearing loss begins with higher frequencies. If your age is causing hearing problems, hearing high-toned voices may become an issue. You’re likely to hear deep, booming voices, however, and this may increase considerations of healthy hearing. Don’t mistake this for precise hearing, as healthy hearing expands to all vocal ranges—not just lower frequencies.
You Have Pain, Itching or Irritation
Hearing loss isn’t exclusive to age. Sometimes, inner ear infections and damage can directly cause hearing issues. If you’re experiencing pain, itching or other irritations, contact a medical provider immediately. Similarly, if you’re experiencing tinnitus—a ringing in the ears—you may have ear damage. Injuries and infections are serious, and medical intervention is always urged in such cases.
You’re having Trouble Hearing Specific Words
In the same way all voices have pitches, certain words may be lower-pitched than others. In-between articles, like an, but, nor, for, it and others may slip beneath your hearing range. Similarly, raised questions, and otherwise higher-pitched words, may elude your hearing if it’s impaired. If you’re needing vocal reassurance, and if you’re only hearing parts of sentences, your hearing may be at risk.
You’re Having Trouble Hearing in Loud Environments
Sensory overload aside, damaged hearing faces great difficulty in noisy environments. Loud noises can drown out subtle tones, and background noise may sweep away important words if your hearing is damaged. If ambient noise reduces your hearing ability, you may be having difficulty picking up smaller noises, and you may need a hearing examination.Your hearing experience is incredibly important. Unfortunately, many individuals ignore subtle cues indicating hearing loss. In most cases, the best solution for hearing loss is prevention. If you’re experiencing one or more hearing loss symptoms, contact us today for testing, preventative methods and more information.
Surprising ways you may be damaging your hearing
About 20 percent of all American adults report some degree of hearing loss. That means there are approximately 48 million people who can no longer enjoy everyday sounds, including music, conversations with a friend, or the sound of a child’s voice. Sometimes the hearing loss is predictable, including cases where the individual had a severe illness or accident that involved hearing. The causes of some hearing loss, however, are quite surprising.Here are some surprising ways you might be damaging your ability to hear well.
Growing older
One out of three people have some degree of hearing loss the age of 65. Much of this hearing loss is cumulative damage from years of loud sounds and other factors. While this may not be surprising to some, the simple unavoidable act of growing older can cause hearing loss for many people.
Overdoing the Decibels
Decibels (dB) are a scientific way to measure and describe the volume of a sound with numbers. Complete silence produces zero decibels while a jet engine produces 140 dB. Not surprisingly, standing next to a jet engine could damage hearing because loud sounds damage the microscopic hair cells found inside the cochlea, the part of the ear responsible for hearing.Different groups of hair cells work to “hear” different sound vibrations, known as frequencies. The healthy human ear can hear a wide range of frequencies, from 20Hz to 20,000 Hz, with 20Hz creating very low tones and 20,000 Hz is a very high pitch. When groups of the hair cells die, you will lose your ability to hear certain frequencies.A sudden, extremely loud noise – like an explosion – can damage or break these hairs but repeated and prolonged exposure to loud noise can damage or break these tiny hairs too. Damage enough of these hairs and you start to lose your hearing.
Blow-drying your hair
Your hair dryer may be doing more than styling your locks – it may be blowing out your hearing too. A blow dryer produces 80 to 90 decibels.
Mowing the lawn
Now you have one more reason to dislike mowing the lawn – it can harm your hearing! The sound a power lawnmower produces measures about 100 decibels, which is about eight times as loud as the typical vacuum cleaner. At that volume, serious hearing damage is possible during prolonged exposure lasting eight hours or more.
Using earbuds
Earbuds are those tiny speakers that connect to your iPod or MP3 player and plug into your ears. While they are fine at low volume, listening to loud music can damage your ears.
Sticking your finger or other foreign objects into your ear
While sticking foreign objects in your ear does not generally cause hearing loss, forcefully inserting something into your ear certain can. As a rule, put nothing smaller than your elbow into your ear canal. This includes cotton swabs – you can use the swab on every part of your ear except for the little hole that leads to your ear canal. You can stick a pencil in your ear only if it is larger than your elbow.
Medications
More than 200 medications can cause hearing loss, a condition doctors call “ototoxicity.” These ototoxic medications include drugs to treat infections, cancer, and heart disease. Hearing often returns after you quit taking the drug, but the damage may be permanent in a few cases. Always ask the doctor prescribing you medication if it could possibly cause hearing loss. If so, request an alternate medication when possible.
Smoking
Studies show that smokers are more likely to suffer hearing loss than are non-smokers. People exposed to second-hand smoke are also at greater risk for hearing problems. Scientists have not yet determined how smoking damages hearing, but it is possible that the heart disease associated with smoking may play a role in hearing loss as heart disease would decrease the flow of oxygen-rich blood to the hair cells of the ear.
What does hearing loss sound like?
To some listeners, the words to the National Anthem of Canada make no sense. They wonder why a Canadian lyricist would begin the patriotic song with the words, “Oh Canada, we stand on cars and freeze.” Sure, everyone knows it gets cold in Canada in the winter, but the country does have some some nice warm days in the summer.But, wait! The song actually says, “Oh Canada, we stand on guard for thee.” If that is not what you heard, and you heard instead that “we stand on cars and freeze,” you may have a certain type of hearing loss. A hearing loss can result in certain sounds being garbled. Often times, you may hear some frequencies but not others. You may even have a constant or intermittent ringing in your ears, called tinnitus. It is possible that you just don’t hear anything at all.
Types of hearing loss & how they might sound
There are three basic types of hearing loss:
- Conductive hearing loss: A conductive loss occurs when the sound does not travel appropriately from the outer ear, through the bones of the middle ear, and to the eardrum. There are many causes of this and most can be corrected medically, surgically or with hearing aids. If you suffer from this type of loss, sounds are faint or distant or you may not be able to hear them at all.
- Sensorineural hearing loss: This is caused by damage to the nerve pathways that connect the inner ear to the brain. In this type of loss, certain frequencies or pitches cannot be heard. You may hear the vowels but not the consonants, which are higher pitched than the vowels. You can hear that someone is speaking, but you cannot make sense of what they are saying because you do not hear all of the sounds. This is what happens with the Canadian Anthem misinterpretation. The words are not understandable. This is a difficult, or impossible, hearing loss to correct.
- Mixed hearing loss: This is a loss that is a combination of conductive and sensory hearing loss.
Tinnitus
If you are constantly bombarded with a ringing sound in your ear, or occasionally look around the room to see who just activated the oven timer, you probably have tinnitus. Tinnitus is an absolutely irritating, and in some cases debilitating, condition. The noise can sound like a buzzing, hissing or clicking. The sound may be continuous or intermittent and you may hear the noise in one or both of your ears. Some people are so annoyed by the sound that they cannot concentrate or even work.
Just a few of the possible causes of tinnitus include:
- Aging. It is more common in people over the age of 60.
- Build-up of ear wax.
- Problems with bone growth in the middle ear.
- High blood pressure.
- Side effects from some medications.
People who suffer from tinnitus often have trouble sleeping due to the noise. This results in a constant feeling of fatigue, memory problems and depression.
Schedule a hearing test with a professional
A visit to an experienced audiologist will assist you in identifying the type of hearing loss you have. There are several types of hearing tests that can be conducted that can identify the exact type of hearing loss you are experiencing. Discussing any symptoms of tinnitus with your audiologist is also advisable, as there are many tinnitus solutions available.Although hearing aids cannot solve every hearing loss problem, new technology has made incredible advances to help those with hearing loss improve their quality of life. To schedule a hearing test in the Phoenix, AZ area – give our friendly audiologists a call at 602-281-4095. We look forward to hearing from you!
Why A Professional Audiologist Can Help More Than Big Box Stores
Any time that you go to the doctor, you take your health into your own hands. However, more and more people are deciding that the best way to protect their health is to go to a big box store like Costco instead. While they have kiosks and access to some medical equipment, the fact of the matter is that they offer inferior services compared to an audiologist.
High Quality Product
One of the first reasons that you will want use go to an audiologist rather than a big box store is that they have access to some of the best medical equipment that money can buy. Although a box store will be able to give you access to some decent hearing devices, the simple fact is that audiologists are actually trained to adjust the product for the individuals. If you have any feedback, then it can be eliminated through careful adjustments, whereas with a box store you will find that you will have more trouble hearing as well as you want.
Cost Effective Measures
Another aspect of hearing health that many people overlook when they put their hearing health in the hands of big box stores like Costco is that it is much more expensive to work with them. While they will entice you with the low prices on the boards outside, once you have had your hearing aid fitted and placed into your ear, they will start to come up with many other payments that you must make. Fittings, referrals, and adjustments are just some of the ways that they will keep digging into your wallet.
When you go to an audiologist, they will outline all of the payments that you need to make, and will often work in conjunction with your insurance company to make sure that you have the access to everything that you need. This keeps costs low, and the customer very happy.
A High Quality Of Care
The last reason that you should consider going to an audiologist over a big box store is the fact that they are professionals in their field. The audiologists have studied the inner ear more than any others, and have the ability to give you a medical diagnosis to determine why you are having hearing impairment or loss. It is always their goal to give you a better chance at living normally, while a big box store only cares about making a sale. The people at the kiosks are not professionals, and are looking out for business interests and not yours. These are just some of the reasons that you should always go to a trained audiologist rather than a box store.
Check out What’s Revolutionizing the Hearing Aid Industry
If you ever heard the term 3D printing, you probably didn’t think it applied to hearing aids. Well, it does. The creation of state of the art hearing aids is made possible through the use of 3D printing. Although it’s nothing too brand new, it’s still a process that revolutionizes the industry thanks to the precision and ease of manufacturing it fosters. 3D printing has another name: additive manufacturing, which refers to the process of adding to something to build it up rather than take layers away with precision tools. When hearing aids are created using additive manufacturing, they make for a better fit and ensure the highest level of comfort for the recipient. It’s true that 10 million 3D printed hearing devices are being used by deaf or hearing impaired individuals at this moment.
Benefits of this Approach
This type of 3D printing has been gaining momentum in the industry due to the boost in the precision of the process. It’s actually used quite often in manufacturing, jewelry, art and electronics. The hearing aid business has been benefiting from the approach for many years, helping people all over the world hear better and feel more comfortable. Actually, 35 million Americans have a hearing impairment, and are thus benefiting from the science of 3D printing. Accuracy, speed and efficiency are at the forefront of this, along with customization – an integral component because no two ear canals are the same. Traditional manufacturing processes never could ensure a perfect unique fit for each user, so as a result, many imperfections were present that detracted from the comfort level for each person. The advent of 3D printing represents a big influence on the industry as a whole.
The Process
The whole process only takes a day to do, which is much less time than it used to take. In addition to the decrease in time for manufacturing, 3D printing offers a truly custom fit for the individual. The process begins with the creation of a pointcloud by an audiologist, which is really just a digital image of the ear using a laser scanner. A quality check is required, then the shell or mold is produced from the printer that is comprised of a resin material. This flexible material will fit inside the ear perfectly. But first, the acoustic vents, electronics and other components must be added, thanks to the benefit of nearly 150,000 points of reference obtained via digital cameras to apply the template to the mold. Audiologists can test a variety of geometric patterns and combinations prior to printing the final shell. Circuitry is then added, which is what is responsible for amplifying the sound. The proof shows in the millions of 3D printed hearing devices in circulation within the hearing impaired community currently.
Foods That Can Prevent Hearing Loss
One of the most important facets of your overall health is your hearing. There are many different ways that you can harm your hearing, and people have begun to take greater measures to prevent damage to their hearing. While they have started to avoid loud noises and have stopped digging in their ears with a cotton swab, some people have tried to do more to save their hearing. That is why we are going to take a look at the different foods that you can eat in order to save your hearing.
Dark Chocolate
Aside from being delicious, there are many health benefits that are offered by indulging in some moderate amounts of dark chocolate. It contains some great antioxidants as well as a great deal of zinc. Zinc can help the middle ear recover from damage that it incurs from repeated loud noises and other acute damage.
Vegetables
It turns out that everyone’s parents were right after all. Not only are vegetables delicious, but they offer many health benefits when it comes to your hearing. Broccoli and cauliflower are just two of the different vegetables that are packed with vitamins and free radical reducing elements. Not only can this save you from many different types of diseases, but it can prevent major illnesses such as cancer from taking root.
Going Bananas
Another one of the best foods to eat for your hearing health are bananas. Not only do they go well with breakfast and dessert, but they have tremendous amounts of magnesium and vitamins. Magnesium has the ability to help your ear build up a resistance to the damage that occurs by everyday living. Not only is this beneficial for your short term hearing, but it will save your hearing for many years to come.
Plenty Of Fish
One of the other important foods that you can eat in order to save your hearing for later in life is fish. They are full of Omega-3 fatty acids that will help your heart keep beating strong into your old age. Not only will increased heart rate result in better circulation around your body, but you will be able to have better bloodflow to the ears. This will prevent many forms of hearing loss from occurring due to a lack of available oxygen in the ears.
Citrus Fruits
Another one of the best fruits that you can eat if you are trying to protect your hearing health is citrus fruit. These fruits are full of vitamins that prevent infections from occurring in the body. The fewer infections that you are exposed to throughout your life, the better chance you have at keeping your hearing health intact.
New Studies Link Hearing Loss and Depression
One of the most devastating ailments from which you can suffer is hearing loss. Not only can it result in widespread inability to enjoy life the way that you used to, but it can also cause many other types of ailments. Since there has been new research into the overall effects of hearing loss, it has been discovered that a new threat has emerged: depression. We will examine the effects of depression upon hearing loss as well as the different ways that you can try to prevent this from occurring.
Prevention
While there is little information as to what can be done to avoid most forms of depression within the population, there is a great deal that can be done to prevent hearing loss. Of course, one of the first things that people should be doing is taking greater measures in order to avoid loud noises. This can be simple for most people, and with hearing protection added on the job, it can be easy for just about everyone. This will prevent you from giving depression the grounds to form within you.
How Does It Occur?
One of the things that most people want to know about hearing loss that is related to depression is how it forms within the human body. The simple answer is that there are two very distinct possibilities. First, the human brain can have certain areas choked off from blood and nutrient flow if you suffer from hearing loss. This is a suspected means of causing depression that has not been proven, but is believed to be effective. Another way that you can suffer from hearing loss and depression is the fact that you cannot communicate with family members or friends like you used to be able to. This can lead to you becoming more withdrawn and less likely to participate in events that make you happy, resulting in depression.
Study
The study that was revealed this link between hearing loss and depression was performed using 18,000 volunteers to test and track their hearing loss. Once it was reported or tested, depending on their ages, the individuals were given a questionnaire that was meant to expose any depression symptoms that they may be feeling. The results were very interesting in that they proved that there is a correlation between hearing loss and depression.
Some of the most significant findings were that the people who were under 70 had a higher prevalence of hearing loss, but the same prevalence of depression as those over the age of 70. This rate of depression among those with hearing loss was a great concern and will continue to be monitored in future research.
Earwax Removal – How you’re doing it wrong
Cleaning your ears out from wax is a vital through somewhat unpleasant part of maintaining your overall health capacity. Unfortunately, most people are willing to clean their own ears despite using tools that do not work and without any knowledge of the damage that they can do to their hearing. Here we will examine the three ways that people use most often to clear their ears and why they are wrong. This article will also look at why you should only go to a licensed professional to have your ears cleaned.
Ear Candles Are A Waste Of Time
The ear candles have grown in popularity over the last few years. While they seem like they may work, there is no scientific backing for the things that they propose. The concept is that the candle wick in the hollow candle will heat up and allow enough wax to melt that it will form a vacuum. This will create a suction from which the wax cannot escape, and then the plug will allow the user to pull out the ear wax. However, this does not work, and people often burn themselves trying these devices.
Going To A Doctor
The best method for removing your ear wax is going to a doctor and having them do it for you. They can take their time examining your ear and determining the reasons for your discomfort. Once they have diagnosed you, they can use special tools to remove the wax quickly and with as little damage as possible. Then they will give you future appointments to get you to come back and have regular cleanings.
Cotton Swabs Are Not Much Help
These nifty little tools can often do more harm than good when it comes to removing ear wax. While the cotton makes it perfect for pulling our wet wax from your ear, it also pushes other bits of wax deeper into your ear, which can cause temporary deafness by impaction. Many people do not know when to stop and can puncture their eardrum, causing permanent damage.
Drops Can Help
Ear drops are another way that people try to treat their ear wax at home. This often requires them to drip the formula into their ear, wait, and then see what comes out when they tilt it the other way. While this can help provide moderate relief, most people see the wax coming out as an invitation to dig around for more wax, leading to more impactions and complications with their hearing.
How Noisy Workplaces are Causing Hearing Loss
Going to work should be a source of completion and happiness for people around the world. Jobs not only give the worker money, but provide a valued service to people in their area. However, many jobs come with the hidden threat of hearing damage that can lead to impairment symptoms. Here we will examine some of the noisiest jobs and see how they can impact a person’s health and what you can do to stop this from occurring.
Mining Jobs
Working beneath the earth is one of the most dangerous jobs in the entire world, and it has been for centuries. However, with the advent of heavy machines and explosions used to help clear a mining area, it is also one of the noisiest jobs that a person can have. While hearing protection can help in these areas, the sheer concussion force that some people are exposed to can still cause hearing loss.
Farming
Another one of the most valuable jobs that a person can hold is farming. After all, planting and harvesting food takes extraordinary amounts of time and patience. It also requires that the farmer is exposed to several hours of incredibly loud noises as they operate tractors and other threshing machines to complete the jobs in days instead of weeks. Not only is this job dangerous, it can harm your hearing permanently.
Airport Ground Crew
Working around planes can also be one of the most harmful jobs for your hearing health. The constant sound of planes taking off and landing exposes people to sounds that could potentially deafen them if not for the noise-dampening headphones that they have to wear. However, if they forgot them for even one plane landing, their hearing could be damaged forever. S
Military Positions
One of the most dangerous jobs in the entire world is working in the military. Even when you are not on the front line of the battle with bullets and artillery, there are many different ways that you can suffer hearing loss. Between planes and helicopters taking off and heavy machines being used to transport goods, military men and women are subjected to tremendous amounts of loud sounds.
Construction Positions
Another job that can lead to a high degree of hearing loss is construction. Whether you are working to repave a road or hammering on a roof throughout the entire day, there are many dangers that are abound for your hearing. These sounds are not as loud as those which are found in other areas of industry, but the prolonged exposure can lead to severe hearing loss.
Closed-Captioning Glasses allow people with hearing loss to enjoy the the movies!
Most people go to the movies without ever considering what would happen if they were not able to listen to the movie. Sadly, this is the case for thousands of people around the world who suffer from various forms of hearing loss. These individuals must wait until the film comes out on DVD in order to have a good idea what the story is about. Fortunately, there has been new closed–captioning glasses released that will help these people enjoy movies while they are still in the theater.
Comfortable Design
These closed-captioning Access Glasses are made so that they will fit around the majority of people’s heads comfortably. They can also be worn over prescription glasses without any drawbacks. The glasses resemble a pair of sunglasses with the detectors on both sides of the rims which pick up the close captioning signals. They are very lightweight, and will not cause fatigue when worn for hours at a time.
Where Can You Find Them?
Currently, these glasses can be found at 6,000 different screens as a part of Regal Cinema’s promotion period. There is no news on how long the test phase will last and whether it will result in more widespread usage, but most people are convinced that the future of these glasses is dependent on the crowds they draw.
Conceptual Fixtures
These Access Glasses were developed by Sony Entertainment in partnership with Regal Cinemas. They have been the dream project of Randy Smith, a chief administrative officer who has a son that is hearing impaired. After years of testing other glasses, he remains optimistic that these will be the future of closed captioning in movie theaters.
The Way They Work
Each pair of access glasses has many features that make them incredible for people who suffer for hearing loss. The glasses can be adjusted to help you see the captions from just about any point within the theater, though most people have noted that the best captions come when you are in the middle.After the customer service individual adjusts the glasses to fit your needs, the projection device sends out a signal that will generate the captions in your visual field. This will allow you to see the captions projected about ten feet in front of your eyes. This will allow you to comfortably view the movie while reading the captions. For people who suffer from hearing loss, this is a great step forward in enjoying films with as few problems as possible.
Get in Touch
Conveniently located near the intersection of 7th Street and Indian School Road.
Southwest Balance, Dizziness & Ear Institute (formerly Arizona Balance & Hearing Aids)
4004 N 7th St.Phoenix, AZ 85014