Hearing Aids for Children

When a child has a hearing loss, many medical providers believe that it is crucial that they be fitted with child hearing aids as early as possible. This is because children commence identifying sounds and learning spoken communication in their very first months of life. Hearing aids can give numerous children the chance to hear and learn language like children with normal hearing. Even babies one month old can wear child hearing aids.

Hearing aids make sound louder in the ranges required; the individual Child's hearing loss determine these ranges. They operate on tiny batteries, gather sounds, amplify them and then transfer them to the ear canal.

All child hearing aids are chosen for, and fitted to, an individual child's hearing loss. This is because not all hearing loss is the same. Some children may not be able to hear certain pitches or tones of sound, while other children may not be able to hear others. An Audiologist is a professional trained in hearing loss, they will employ tests to ascertain how much to amplify sound for each child. These tests are not painful. They are used because very young children cannot reliably inform us when sound is too loud, too soft or unclear.

Although the type of hearing aid will greatly depend on the type and magnitude of the Child's hearing loss, behind-the-ear (BTE) hearing aids are frequently recommended for children because their durability. BTE hearing aids are very practical for children because they are less dependent on the size of the inner ear. Custom ear molds for BTE hearing aids are soft and easy to clean and, while they may need to be replaced because children grow at rapid rates, they are easier and less expensive to replace than in-the-ear (ITE) hearing aids or in-the-canal (ITC) hearing aids. In addition, many parents find it beneficial that they can easily monitor and control behind-the-ear (BTE) hearing aids.

Once a child has been equipped with a hearing aid, it is very useful for parents to work with the child's hearing medical providers and other professionals to identify the services the child will require to assist him or her develop spoken communication and hearing skills. For children below the age of three, these services may be available by way of the early intervention system. When eligible children with disabilities are three and older, the public education system takes over and makes special education and associated services available. (You can contact the National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities (NICHCY) for information about accessing these systems or services).

This is just the briefest overview of hearing aids. Child hearing aids are complex devices, and there are many features to consider.