助聽器的兩三事

Tips for Hearing Aid Users

• Feedback – that whistling sound made by a hearing aid – should not occur when your hearing aid is in your ear unless something is placed over it (such as cupping your hand over the hearing aid or bringing a telephone too close to it). The most common cause of excessive feedback is a build-up of earwax in the ear canal, which blocks the sound. A loose fit could also be the culprit.
• The quality of sound on television sets varies from excellent to terrible, even for different programs on the same TV. All television sets manufactured after 1993 (13” and larger) have built-in captioning. The captioning is available simply by turning it on through the remote control.
• Several times a month someone asks us, “Is there a problem with my hearing aid or earmold? The sound gets louder whenever I press on the earmold.” This is normal and is due to the physics of sound. When you press on your earmold (or the aid itself for in-the-ear or canal aids), the mold fits a little tighter and deeper, making the ear canal volume less. Smaller ear canal volume results in a slightly louder sound level.
• If you try a second new battery and your hearing aid still doesn’t work, it’ s probably the hearing aid, not the battery. Our batteries are fresh, long-lasting, and have a shelf life of more than a year.
• Travel tip: Use a small dri-aid jar to keep your hearing aids secure at night. Be sure to bring plenty of batteries and even a spare hearing aid. You probably won’t need the back-up hearing aid, but at least you won’t have to worry, “What if?”