You may know that digital hearing aids are growing in popularity, but you may not know what makes them superior to analog hearing aids. It’s not in the digital capability itself; it’s the features of digital hearing aids that set them apart. Simply put, they can do things users of analog hearing aids couldn’t dream of. Here are a few reasons to consider digital hearing aids, courtesy of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.
Feedback Reduction: One of the biggest benefits of digital hearing aids is their ability to reduce the feedback common to analog models. Some hearing aids can even monitor for and eliminate feedback while the listener is wearing the hearing aid. Many users find digital feedback reduction most helpful for occasional feedback, often resulting from jaw movement or close proximity to certain objects.
Noise Reduction: Digital Noise Reduction processing can help reduce annoying noises and improve your hearing aid’s speech recognition. It works best for noises that do not fluctuate across various decibel levels. They are sometimes recommended for use with directional microphones, which do not work well for noises to the side of or behind a user.
Digital Speech Enhancement: These systems increase the intensity of some segments of speech. DSE in hearing aids is still relatively new, and its researchers are unsure of its effectiveness.
Signal Generators: What if your hearing aid helped your audiologist fit it to your exact specifications? Signal generators can do that. They create and process sound to perform loudness growth and threshold testing to gather results unique to your ear and hearing loss. This helps audiologists fit your hearing aid better and more efficiently.
Digital hearing aids are becoming more popular and their capabilities continue to expand to improve the experience of hearing aid users. There are a lot of features to choose from, but our expert audiologists will help you select the digital capabilities that work best for you. If you’re in Southwestern PA, stop by Hearing Unlimited to see our digital hearing aid products.