Chocolates, candies, and…sound amplifiers

I remember skimming through web pages and pages of delectable chocolates and old-fashioned candies when I was doing some online Christmas shopping this past year.  As I scrolled farther and farther down the webpage, my taste buds could almost taste the marzipan candies.  Then it appeared.  In between the chocolate-peanut butter snowmen and the swirls of peppermint…there was a “sound amplifier”…for under $50.  Talk about good feeling gone.  I just sort of stared at it, wondering what it was doing in the middle of my sugar shopping. 

I never realized (in my bubble) that companies (some not even anywhere related to audiology) sold such amplifiers–that look like hearing aids–targeted to the hard-of-hearing consumer.  To the average lay person who doesn’t know the difference between a custom hearing aid and a very cheap sound amplifier, these companies seem to mislead consumers in to believing they can correct their hearing loss with a simple answer of a Personal Sound Amplification Product (PSAP).

Unfortunately, hearing loss cannot be helped with a “one size fits all” device, just as reading glasses found at the drug store cannot be used for all vision instances.  In the MarkeTrak VIII study by Dr. Sergei Kochkin, he writes that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) did issue a guide to differentiate between simple sound amplifiers and true approved hearing aids.  However, Dr. Eric Mann, the deputy director of the FDA’s Division of Ophthalmic, Neurological, and Ear, Nose, and Throat Devices, goes further to cite that in choosing a PSAP as a substitute over a custom hearing aid can actually “lead to more damage.”

Hearing tests can result in such varied audiograms that it’s quite unrealistic to expect a simple “sound amplifier” to meet the unique needs of individuals.  Only a custom hearing aid–fitted by a licensed professional–could achieve that level of quality and integrity in a product.  This brings me back to the very ugly sound amplifier that was hogging up the screen between my chocolates and candies. It was bulky and could not have been very comfortable to wear.  In addition, the piece that is supposed to slide comfortably in to one’s ear looked like it would easily fall out due to its not-so-customized fit.

As a hearing aid wearer myself, I love the fact that I am able to maintain my quality of life while forgetting that I have them on half the time.  This is a sign of a quality fit…with a quality product.

An interesting point was brought up in the MarkeTrak study.  People who purchased direct-mail hearing aids or PSAPs typically only wore the devices for an average of 3 hours a day, as opposed to those hard of hearing who wore custom hearing aids up to 10 hours a day.  What would cause such a contrast?  Have you ever had someone make an annoying noise in your ear for a long time?  The PSAPs have been known to emit static or be too loud, etc., causing  the person to just pull them out after a while.  Remember when Dr. Mann said they could even “lead to damage”?  PSAPs are just not meant to compensate for a person’s hearing loss.

With a custom fit hearing aid, technology has come so far that noise levels are often automatically adjusted depending on the environment in which a person is standing.  Some are even compatible with hearing aid-specific smart phone applications.

So why do some continue to buy PSAPs?  Number one reason:  cost.  I get it…but $50 will not solve the problem–and may in turn make it worse.  A better option would be to contact a licensed hearing care professional who is conscious of both a patient’s needs as well as their budget, offering solutions that would help improve quality of living without breaking the bank.  Hearing is a sense worth the investment.  It’s just as important as sight and touch.  Monitor it annually just as you do your vision.  You’ll be glad you did.

Sources:  http://www.betterhearing.org/hearingpedia/marketrak-publications/marketrak-viii-utilization-psaps-and-direct-mail-hearing-aids

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Kiersten Troutman is the Manager of Marketing and Outreach at HEARINC in Canton, Ohio.  As a wife and mother of four young children, one of her greatest joys in life is being able to hear her children laugh and say, “I love you.”  She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Kent State University, and is finishing up her Master of Arts in Composition and Rhetoric from The University of Akron. She suffers severe hearing loss in her left, and mild to moderate in her right, from birth, and has a true appreciation for the audiological advances made in the assistive hearing device industry.  She has a passion for helping others realize that hearing loss does not discriminate with age, and has a vision to educate the public on how quality of life can often be improved simply by taking advantage of the amazing technology available.

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Copyright. Kiersten D. Troutman. 2015.