One hearing aid or two?
This is a very common question. Most of our patients ask why they need two hearing aids. The answer is simple. Most people will hear the best with two hearing aids. Can you get by with one? Sure, but there will be a number of situations that will still be troublesome, like hearing a soft voice or understanding speech in a noisy room. Usually those are also the very reasons that people came in in the first place. There are situations where one hearing aid is the appropriate treatment, but those are the exception, rather than the rule. The best way to find out is to have your hearing tested.
Ideally, every hearing impaired person should wear two hearing aids. Today, we would not consider wearing a pair of eye glasses that contained only one lens for one eye. Yet people are often surprised to learn that two hearing aids will provide better hearing. Yes, there are exceptions. These are actually quite rare and depend on the level of hearing for one ear compared to the other. When we use a hearing aid only in one ear it is as if we only have one ear. We have two ears for many reasons. Two ears help us to hear from all sides, not just from one restricted area. Two ears help us hear speech in noise situations like restaurants or parties with lots of people talking. Our brain must compare the information from different angles to help filter the unwanted sounds from those we need to hear. Two ears help us hear those quiet sounds. This is very important when we need some amplification but not too much amplification. Many loud sounds can be very loud and this is even more striking f
Wearing two hearing aids, called binaural amplification, has been shown in clinical tests and field trials to provide many solid benefits. Even when hearing loss is noticeably more pronounced in one ear than the other, wearing two hearing aids can balance the sound-gathering capability of both ears and create a more even, natural-sounding environment. Wearing two hearing aids can also allow you to set the volume lower on each of the aids, enabling you to hear sound at a softer, more natural level. Detecting the direction in which sound is originating is also much easier wearing two hearing aids. If you live in the Mesa, Phoenix, Scottsdale, or Tempe areas, contact Fynes Audiology today to discuss the differences between one and two hearing aids.
Generally, if a person has hearing loss in both ears, it is better to wear two hearing aids. When wearing two hearing aids, a person may feel more balanced and may be able to more easily determine the location of a sound. In addition, research has shown that people understand speech better if they wear two hearing aids. Occasionally, a person’s hearing loss may indicate that only one hearing aid should be worn. Ask your audiologist what is best for you.
