Why Does My Friend Like His Hearing Aids Better Than I Do? Part 2

How long did they put off wearing hearing aids before getting help?

This may sound strange to you. Why would that matter? The reason this is so important is that due to sound deprivation caused by a hearing loss, almost everyone over time losses their ability to process sounds into words. That means if you did not use hearing aids when you first could have used them, no doubt you have this problem to some degree.

We measure how well you can understand speech with a simple phonically balanced word list. It is measured from 100% to 0%. About 6% of patients in my private practices have 0% of word understanding. So even with hearing aids on but not allowing them to get other clues when someone is talking to them, like lip reading, they can hear sounds of speech but the brain just can’t make sense of it.

This is one of the most important aspects that people are just starting to understand. Early detection and correction are very important for anyone who has a hearing loss. Being fit early when a hearing aid is recommended will slow down the process of losing your speech understanding. The patients in my practice that have gotten help early are getting many dividends because they are functioning so well. Keeping the ear stimulated with sound, to compensate for your hearing loss over, time is critical. (continued)

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