Hearing aid devices
From hearing aid technology to hearing protection devices, caring for your ears has long been an expensive process. With doctor visits, prescriptions and more, all types of hearing aid devices required continuous effort and payments from anyone interested in using them. But things are rapidly changing. Today’s digital hearing aids have finally become easily adjustable and empowering—and all is possible from the comfort of home.
There’s so much to be excited about with these cutting-edge hearing aids. So, let’s take a look at the different types of modern hearing devices and the policy changes, in places like the United States, that are pushing for much broader access for anyone suffering from hearing loss.
In-the-ear & behind-the-ear: the two types of hearing aids
Hearing devices have taken many forms over the years. For anyone new to this, the best way to categorize the many available options is with two basic types:
- In-the-ear (ITE) hearings aids. Since these are worn specifically in the ear canal, they normally need to be custom fit by a hearing care professional who takes an impression of the ear canal before providing the hearing aids. Furthermore, ITEs can be customized with options that fit closer to the outer ear, others that fit very deeply within the ear canal, and available in a variety of skin tones to match the outer ear.
- Behind-the-ear (BTE) hearing aids. As the name implies, BTEs sit behind or on top of the outer ear, and they use tubing that directs the sound digitally down into another piece that sits in the ear canal. The inner piece can take the form of either a custom-fit earmold or a dome style that only partially blocks the ear canal opening; the outer piece can be customized with different colors to match both hair and skin tones.
For those with mild to severe hearing loss, both ITE and BTE hearing aids provide much-needed relief to people around the world. But the common theme among many of these devices is the need for a “custom fit” with a hearing professional. In many parts of the world, especially more rural regions, the availability of specialized healthcare is often difficult or impossible to access for many people. That’s why an exciting new development, with hearing aids available to purchase online and over the counter, is finally making this once-exclusive technology more easily accessible to anyone who needs it.
Over-the-counter hearing devices
In a move to overcome previous barriers to hearing device costs and treatment, over-the-counter (OTC) hearing aids are gaining support internationally. This move will ultimately allow more innovative companies to enter the hearing aid market and package their advanced digital technology in a modern, elegant design.
On October 19th, 2021, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, took things a step further. They issued a groundbreaking proposal to create a new category of OTC hearing aids which can be sold directly to consumers online or in stores without a medical exam or fitting by an audiologist. This milestone was echoed by Xavier Becerra, Secretary of Health and Human Services, when she said, “today’s move by the FDA takes us one step closer to the goal of making hearing aids more accessible and affordable for the tens of millions of people who experience mild to moderate hearing loss.”
A high-tech and accessible hearing aid is precisely what Audientes aims to bring, and we recently started this journey in India. While meeting a specialist is still required for those who are completely deaf, hearing aid devices sold online and over the counter drastically simplify the process for those with less severe forms of hearing loss.
Hearing aid devices (always) near me
What makes hearing devices, like Ven by Audientes, revolutionary is that they build on today’s endless digital tech opportunities. In other words, finding a life-changing hearing aid or amplification hearing device “near me” now simply means an online search from home and contactless delivery to your door. Getting important, personal questions answered by a hearing specialist or doctor can now be found with in-depth interviews with our resident audiologist, Dr. Chryssoula Thodi. Personalizing and adjusting your hearing devices now can be done fast and easy using the Audientes app for both Android and iOS.
High-end hearing aid design has finally transformed into democratic design. Ven™ by Audientes is a flexible, no-nonsense hearing aid that is easily adjustable and empowering to anyone who uses it. This assistive device for the hearing impaired is equal in sound quality to any top-end hearing aid solution but is available for only a fraction of the cost.
Experience Ven for yourself
Ready to begin a life-changing journey and let the world in with Ven? Discover all of the specifics about hearing health and the unique design features that make Ven by Audientes a top alternative to traditional hearing aids.
