Hearing Aid Styles
BTE
Behind The Ear hearing aid. Here the electronics are housed in a case behind the ear. Tubing and a custom made mould or ear tip direct sound in to the ear canal. Over the years they have become smaller. Larger ones though can accommodate a larger battery and amplifier, making them ideal for people who require more power.
RIC
Receiver In the Canal hearing aid. These are a smaller version of the BTE that have the speaker unit of the instrument incorporated in the ear tip, instead of the main body of the hearing instrument. As a result, the housing that fits behind the ear can be made very small, meaning that these instruments can create some of the most discreet solutions on the market today, as the picture shows. They can also create a more open fitting enabling the user to use more of their natural hearing with a less blocked off/enclosed feeling.
ITE
In The Ear hearing aid. All the components are housed in a custom shell that fits snuggly in the visible part of the ear. ITEs are easier to insert than smaller custom products which makes them ideal for people with dexterity problems. They often take a larger battery which makes maintenance and battery changing easier.
ITC
In The Canal hearing aid. Again all the components are housed within the custom shell which fits in the lower portion of the outer ear. They have a slightly smaller batter than their ITE
counterparts, but still provide a comfortable cosmetic solution for those wanting a hearing aid in the ear, which doesn’t interfere with glasses, hats etc.
CIC
Completely In the Canal hearing aid. The components are again housed within a tiny custom shell that fits snuggly in to the entrance of the ear canal. This provides a great cosmetic solution with the instrument being nearly invisible when worn. Because of their size they are not suitable with those who have dexterity problems. In addition they use a much smaller battery, which have a much reduced battery life.
IIC
Invisible In the Canal hearing aid. This is like the CIC but fits deeper in to the canal, providing the ultimate in discretion and invisiblity when it comes to hearing aids. As a consequence the IIC products are only suitable for between 15%-20% of people, either due to the size of their ear canal or other physical constraints.
sha
Spectacle Hearing Aid. Ideal for people who do not like wearing something in their ear due to choice or physical restrictions. They are discreet and have a dual functionality of improving your hearing whilst correcting your vision. This type of product is not suitable for everyone and we would advise a hearing assessment to discuss suitability.
