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An Introduction to Hearing Aids
When people start having problems with their hearing, they usually turn to hearing aids for them to hear better. The old days featured what looked like 'ear horns' or funnel shaped devices that amplified sounds whenever people needed to listen to something. It was unwieldy but effective.
Of course, the evolution of technology made it possible for the extinction of the atrocious-looking device. Now, hearing aids are commonly electronic devices that are worn on the ear like the conventional ear phone. The first design of these had a rectangular battery pack that connected to the ear piece with a lengthy wire. The battery pack was usually placed in the user's pocket. This design tended to be flawed, as the microphone used to amplify sounds wasn't placed very strategically, often suffering disturbances from the user's clothing. During the mid 20th century, they came up with hearing aids that had a small battery inside the actual earpiece.
Interestingly there are several types of hearing aids that differ in size and power. There are those that are worn on the body as mentioned earlier and then there are behind the ear (BTE) hearing aids, which are put into place with a specially made ear mold. This comes in several colors and allows the user to use their natural healing.
The next type is the in the ear (ITE) hearing aid. These are also custom made to fit the user's ear. Modern models of the ITEs have the ability to regulate and cancel feedback, a loud, screeching sound caused by sound leaking out and being amplified again.
You can also find in the canal (ITC), mid canal (MIC) and completely in the canal (CIC) types of hearing aids. ITC aids only fill the bottom half of the external ear. MIC and CIC are smaller and isn't usually visible. Use these only if you have mild to moderately severe hearing problems.
Bone anchored hearing aids (BAHA) are aids that are surgically implanted devices that use bones as pathways of sound.
In the 50s, there were devices that were created for people who found trouble with both hearing and seeing. They were called eyeglass aids, devices that combined both hearing aids and spectacles. The hearing aids were put in the temple part of the glasses. The problem of this is that it was not versatile at all. You either had to wear both or none at all and didn't have a choice of frames.
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