August 31, 2007

Digital hearing aids offer medical, aesthetic advances

BOULDER – Elissa Wilcox was crushed when she had to quit her sales job in New York because she was hearing impaired.

Because of the high level of noise during a normal day she wore analog hearing aids but still couldn’t hear her clients through the clatter. “Phone calls were impossible,” she said.

SPONSORED CONTENT

Solar Operations and Maintenance for Commercial Properties

One key qualification to consider when selecting a solar partner to install your system is whether they have an Operations and Maintenance (O&M) or service department. Since solar is a long-term asset with an expected lifecycle of 30 plus years, ongoing O&M should be considered up front. A trusted O&M partner will maximize your system’s energy output and therefor the return on your investment.

Now a Broomfield resident, Wilcox has a new sales job and wears the new Phonak Smartlink – a hearing aid that integrates Bluetooth technology for a bidirectional digital link into her cell phone. Her Phonak Smartlink also has wireless connectivity to other Bluetooth devices. Her old-fashioned analog hearing aids are incompatible with phones, iPods and other similar equipment.

“With the merger of telecom, entertainment and hearing-enhancement products, digital hearing aids can become different things at different times,´ said Christopher Schweitzer, senior audiologist at Family Hearing Centers, headquartered in Boulder with additional offices in Lafayette and Broomfield.

Companies such as Sony, Starkey, Widex, Audigy, Siemens, Unitron, Phonak, Oticon, Audifon and GN ReSound produce open-fit – around the ear – or tiny inner-ear-canal aids with multidirectional microphones that have the ability to differentiate sounds, integrate with other devices and share results. Digital hearing aids process sounds as fast as 100 to 200 million calculations per second.

“They eliminate whistling and provide better amplification with the ability to hear higher pitches,” Schweitzer said.

Digital aids, which have an average life span of five years, cost $800 to $3,500 per ear, and Medicare and most health insurance companies don’t cover them. Warranty replacement insurance runs $50 to $250 per year depending on the model, and batteries only last from five to seven days and cost about $1 each.

If passed, the Hearing Aid Assistance Tax Credit Act, Senate Bill 2329 – introduced in Congress in May 2007 – would provide up to $500 credit every five years toward hearing aids for those 55 and older.

The Better Hearing Institute estimates 32 million people have a hearing loss. AARP reports those between 45 and 64 have more hearing loss than those older than 65.

“These people are tech-savvy. They wear iPods and use Bluetooth phones on their ears. They carry cell phones, so the hearing-aid stigma is gone. No one knows if you’re wearing them,” Schweitzer said.

D’Anne Rudden, owner of the Longmont Hearing Center, said most new technology has feedback cancellation systems where the background noise is reduced tremendously. “Open-fit has revolutionized what we can do for patients.” It helps those with small ear canals and when wearers need more stability.

One example is Sharon Bundy, a recreational swimmer. She had ear infections, and the in-canal aids wouldn’t let her ears dry out. Her Sonic Ions that fit over the ear “allow in air. The sounds are more normal.” Her Ions have microphones pointed in different directions that she can change by pushing a button on the hearing aid.

Dr. William Jessee, president and chief executive of Denver’s Medical Group Management Association, came to Family Hearing Centers to get the Sonic Innovations in-canal aid, with directional focus. He used to wear an open-fit brand but prefers the in-canal style for “the jacked-up power in the canal and – in terms of vanity – you can’t see them.”

Even with the latest technology not all brands work with everyone. Mark Magaldi, president of Boulder’s Transit Marketing Group, tried the Widex Inteo, “But, they kept whistling and ringing,” contrary to what other fans of the product say. He then tried the Sonic Innovations in-canal hearing aids and is thrilled. He can manipulate four settings, and “when something goes wrong, I can just reboot.”

Both Family Hearing Centers and the Longmont Hearing Center emphasize one brand is not necessarily better than another; it’s mainly the fitter’s knowledge and skill. The audiologist must know how to program each hearing aid specifically for the wearer’s ears and adjust them as hearing changes or degrades. Daily cleaning, regular servicing and support also factor into hearing aid success, Rudden said.

“The brands we recommend depend on lifestyle. Do they want to hear better in noise? Do they want to hear through other devices? It’s a matter of each individual’s quality of life,” Schweitzer said.

Although they won’t reveal statistics, Rudden and Schweitzer said sales of digital hearing aids are accelerating as consumers become more aware of what the technology can do for them.

In the near future there will be more multifunction products, which consumers can operate for different purposes, such as long- and short-range telecom, language translators and entertainment, Schweitzer said. “We need better transducers, especially the speaker components. They are still part of the challenge to delivering really high-fidelity sound with less than 1.5 volts.”

BOULDER – Elissa Wilcox was crushed when she had to quit her sales job in New York because she was hearing impaired.

Because of the high level of noise during a normal day she wore analog hearing aids but still couldn’t hear her clients through the clatter. “Phone calls were impossible,” she said.

Now a Broomfield resident, Wilcox has a new sales job and wears the new Phonak Smartlink – a hearing aid that integrates Bluetooth technology for a bidirectional digital link into her cell phone. Her Phonak Smartlink also has wireless connectivity to other Bluetooth devices. Her old-fashioned analog hearing aids…

Christopher Wood
Christopher Wood is editor and publisher of BizWest, a regional business journal covering Boulder, Broomfield, Larimer and Weld counties. Wood co-founded the Northern Colorado Business Report in 1995 and served as publisher of the Boulder County Business Report until the two publications were merged to form BizWest in 2014. From 1990 to 1995, Wood served as reporter and managing editor of the Denver Business Journal. He is a Marine Corps veteran and a graduate of the University of Colorado Boulder. He has won numerous awards from the Colorado Press Association, Society of Professional Journalists and the Alliance of Area Business Publishers.
Categories:
Sign up for BizWest Daily Alerts