Hearing aids are still the treatment of choice for age-related hearing loss. Modern devices are small, have sophisticated microelectronic technology and can be worn either behind the ear or even in the ear canal.Today, they can compensate for almost any type of hearing loss to the extent that sufficient speech understanding and thus communication with fellow human beings is ensured.
The following types of hearing aids are currently available:
- Behind-the-ear devices
- In-the-ear devices
- Concha (auricle) devices
- Ear canal devices
Furthermore, there are hearing glasses:
- Bone conduction hearing glasses
- Air conduction hearing glasses
In bone conduction hearing glasses, sound is transmitted from the temple of the glasses to the bone behind the ear, reaching the inner ear. This type of hearing glasses is used in cases of severe hearing loss or chronic ear infections, as well as eczema of the auditory canal.
Air conduction hearing glasses are used for moderate hearing loss.
A new treatment method for moderate to severe sensorineural hearing loss is hearing systems that can be implanted in the middle ear.The advantages of these systems are invisibility, improved sound quality, better speech intelligibility and better tolerance to loud noises.However, these systems are still partly in the experimental stage. Nevertheless, so-called hearing therapies with trained physicians can also lead to an improvement in acoustic abilities and thus to an increase in the quality of life in old age.
