What Happens During a Hearing Aid Fitting?

After being diagnosed with hearing loss by a hearing healthcare professional, hearing aids are a common recommendation. There are many different things to factor in when a professional helps you decide which hearing aid – with which settings – is right for you. All of this is considered part of the fitting process. You might be curious to know a little more about what exactly is being fit and why it’s important to your hearing health. First of all, there are two large groups of features covered in a hearing aid fitting – electroacoustic and non-electroacoustic. These are fancy terms for the physical and sound amplification aspects of your hearing aid.

Non-electroacoustic features

Non-electroacoustic features are things like the style of your hearing aids (behind the ear, in the ear and all their variations), whether they’re fit to one or both of your ears, the earmold or shell design and its customization process, the number and size of the hearing aids’ controls, whether they’re compatible with Bluetooth technology or FM systems, and additional considerations such as whether you prefer automatic, manual or remote controlled programming and volume adjustments.  

These features are the ones for which you’ll have the most input during the fitting process. Take your hearing healthcare professional’s opinions and experience to heart, but ultimately choose the design and features that best meet your needs and preferences.  

Electroacoustic features

Hearing aids are becoming more and more advanced as digital technology has opened the door to previously unimaginable customization and capability. According to some lists, there are many as 19 specific features under this category. No wonder it’s important to have your hearing aid fit by a professional! Besides basic sound settings, here are just a few of the settings and features that will be adjusted during a hearing aid fitting:

• Feedback settings
• Internal noise settings
• Telecoil settings
• The number and types of channels
• Background noise features
• Directional microphone settings
• Dedicated music programs

The fitting process

When it comes to testing your hearing aids to make sure all these specifications are fit to your hearing needs, the hearing healthcare professional will check the physical fit, verify the settings, and perform real ear and other in-office hearing tests. It’s important to make sure the hearing aid meets the expectations and requirements your unique hearing and lifestyle require. Don’t skip this important process, and make sure a hearing healthcare professional performs your hearing aid fitting.