Hearing Loss and Your Options
 
Imagine not being able to hear your son say, “I do,” never hearing your granddaughter’s laugh, not hearing your wife in an emergency. The social implications from hearing loss range from the emotional to the dangerous and your Thousand Oaks, Camarillo, Oxnard, and Simi Valley audiologists want you to be healthy in mind, body and soul. The professionals from West Coast Hearing and Balance Center, an association of West Coast ENT, want you to know all of your options when your hearing begins to fail.
 
Hearing aids
 
West Coast Hearing and Balance Center offers a wide variety of options for hearing aids:
 

•     Lyric®: Invisible Hearing Device
•     Invisible-In-the-Ear (IIC)
•     Behind-The-Ear (BTE)
•     In-The-Ear (ITE)
•     In-The-Canal (ITC)
•     Completely-In-The-Canal (CIC)
•     Open Fit
•     Receiver-in-the-Ear (RITE)

 
BTE and ITE are the most common choices and are used by nearly 95% of hearing loss patients. BTE hearing aids are the largest but also usually provide the most power and circuit options. While they may not be the most discreet, as they rest behind the ear, they’re certainly quite effective. ITE, on the other hand, are housed entirely in the wearer’s ear, filling either the whole outer part of the ear, or smaller ones that fill a smaller portion of the outer part.
 
Assisted Listening Devices
 
Assisted listening devices help the patient hear better in specific situations, such as when talking on the phone or watching television. They’re excellent for all levels of hearing loss and even those with normal hearing. These devices amplify the sound you are trying to hear, while cutting out background noise.
 
Baha Implants
 
For the right Thousand Oaks, Camarillo, Oxnard, and Simi Valley ENT patient, surgery can also be an option to treat hearing loss. Baha bone conduction implants take the vibrations from sound and send them directly to your inner ear, bypassing the damaged outer and middle parts of the ear that traditionally pick up sound through air conduction.
 
Hearing loss isn’t easy on anyone. Your West Coast ENT audiologist doesn’t want you to miss out on some of the most beautiful and important events in life. To learn more about your options and different types of hearing aids, please visit our audiologists’, West Coast Hearing and Balance Center, website.