In 2009, Consumer Reports published an independent survey on hearing aid wearers which found that a projected 2/3 of all hearing aids in the US may be misfit.  Other researchers have performed similar surveys with similar results.

A very useful tool in the fitting of hearing aids to help correct this situation is called probe-microphone real-ear.  Without getting too technical, this tool verifies the fit by allowing the hearing professional to measure the acoustic output of the hearing aids while in the wearer’s ears.  The process takes about 15 minutes and requires little to no effort on the part of the wearer.

In 2006 a Hearing Review survey found that 2/3 hearing aid fitters had a real ear system, but less than 1/3 used it routinely.  I believe this tendency is either due to time constraints, lack of knowledge of the real-ear device, or lack of insurance reimbursement.

In addition, researchers Christensen and Groth at the 2008 America Academy of Audiolgy convention stated that the number one key mistake made by hearing aid fitters is the failure to verify hearing aid fittings with a probe-microphone real-ear measurement.

If you would like to have your hearing and hearing aid fit checked, we invite you to call us for a free assessment though the month of September.