The right hearing aid for your child

There are many sizes of hearing aids, which vary from a behind-the-ear (BTE) model, where the electronic components are mounted in a compartment which fits behind the ear, to smaller canal models, where the electronic components are mounted in a moulded shell which fits in the ear canal.

Although your child may benefit from various sizes of hearing aids, there can be certain disadvantages to canal hearing aids. First and foremost, your child’s ear canal may be too small to accommodate a canal hearing aid. Furthermore, your child’s ear is in constant growth throughout childhood and the custom-fitting hearing aid will not fit as securely as the ear gradually becomes larger.

The BTE resolves this problem since it fits behind the ear and is not affected by the ear’s growth. Only the earmould, a plastic form which is moulded to your child’s ear, needs to be remade at a minimal cost. Children are also prone to ear infections. Such infections can produce fluids that could harm the internal components of the hearing aid. In the BTE, the electronic components are placed away from potential infection sites.

In sum, it is strongly recommended that only the BTE hearing aid be fitted for young children. Older children, with clearance from their hearing healthcare professional, may have the option of wearing a canal hearing aid.

Digital hearing aids
In recent years, digital technology, similar to that used to produce the clear sound of a compact disk (CD), has revolutionised the hearing aid industry by greatly increasing the sound quality and fitting flexibility of the hearing aid.

Digital hearing aids provide new innovative features such as noise suppression, which makes it easier for the hearing aid user to hear speech in noisy environments. The digital hearing aid is also very adjustable so that it can be fine tuned to rectify most hearing concerns and provide comfort to the user.

Hearing aids, colours
Many hearing aids are available in a range of bright, fun colours.

The reason for this is that, while most adults want their hearing aids to blend in with their skin or hair colour in order to make them less noticeable, most children prefer a bright colour to make their hearing aids pretty or cool.

For most children, beige or brown hearing aids are dull.