Accurate hearing aid fitting and verification are crucial processes in ensuring that your hearing aids are adjusted to deliver optimal sound quality. Fitting involves tailoring your hearing aids to match your anatomical and auditory needs, while verification confirms their effectiveness in real-world scenarios.
At Apex Audiology, we schedule a hearing aid fitting after you order your hearing aids and they arrive in our office. When fitting your hearing aids, our hearing specialist digitally programs your hearing aids and customizes them to match your prescription and meet your hearing needs. We ensure that your hearing aids provide clarity, comfort, and confidence.
When you put the hearing aids in for the first time, you may experience a variety of emotions about the sounds you hear. This is normal and to be expected. The goal of the hearing aid is to make everyday sounds audible and comfortable, but the sound you hear should be clear and pleasant.
The primary goal while fitting a hearing aid is to ensure it delivers the right amount of sound to your eardrum, across various frequencies and volumes. This process is essential to help maximize the effectiveness of the hearing aid and help you hear as well as possible.
A hearing aid fitting ensures that if there are things that you feel should be adjusted right away, small changes can be made to the hearing aids to deliver clear sound where you need it.
Our hearing specialists are equipped with advanced hearing technologies and methods to improve the effectiveness of hearing evaluations and hearing aid programming.
One of the more advanced technologies available is live speech mapping, a fitting and verification technique designed to ensure your hearing aids are precisely tailored to your hearing requirements. This approach uses small microphones positioned in the ear canal to analyze how effectively you hear speech sounds through your hearing aids, helping identify and address your specific hearing needs.
At Apex Audiology, we use the hearing aid manufacturers’ algorithms during your hearing aid fitting appointment. These algorithms help align the hearing aid settings with your anatomical and auditory needs. This includes considering your:
Following the manufacturers’ algorithms help program hearing aid settings efficiently while maintaining high-quality control over its fitting in your ear.
Our hearing specialists also guide you on:
For this visit, it is a good idea to bring a family member or close friend so that they can help you remember all the information that is given and act as a support system for you.
During your hearing aid fitting appointment, you may also receive a short survey or a list of questions to answer. Be honest about what you hear so that our hearing specialist can work with you to create the best possible listening experience with your new hearing aids.
Your hearing aid fitting is only a starting point. Once your hearing aids are fitted and you use them in more situations and adapt to all the new sounds you hear, you may find that additional adjustments are needed. These changes can be made over time at future appointments.
Your attitude is one important key to success with hearing aids. People who have a positive attitude do better with hearing aids. Remember that it may take some time to get used to the sounds you were missing. By working closely with your hearing specialist, you will get the most out of your new hearing aids.
Once the hearing aid fitting is complete, we perform a post-fitting verification to test the effectiveness of your device’s programming.
At Apex Audiology, this is done using sound-field testing. During this test, you will be presented with speech signals through one or more sound sources in a controlled environment to assess how your new hearing aids perform for you.
Sound field testing is a verification method conducted in a controlled environment to assess the performance of hearing aids. It provides additional insights into how well hearing aids improve your ability to hear and understand sounds compared to unaided hearing.
By comparing the results of these two conditions, we determine how effective the hearing aids are in enhancing your hearing, particularly in terms of soft sound detection, speech understanding, and background noise management.
Sound-field testing allows us to:
There are three primary types of sound field testing, focusing on a specific aspect of hearing:
Sound-field testing uses speech signals to ensure that hearing aids deliver the desired results in everyday situations. The process may involve the following steps:
Ensuring your hearing aids are properly fitted and verified offers numerous advantages, enhancing both your hearing experience and overall quality of life.
After your hearing aid fitting and verification process is complete, you should experience:
From following the manufacturer’s fitting algorithms to sound-field testing, we use the best tools to ensure your hearing aids meet your daily needs and provide seamless communication in various environments. Our approach guarantees that your hearing aids not only fit well but also enhance your quality of life.
At Apex Audiology, we strive to deliver exceptional care for your hearing health by integrating services like hearing aid fitting and verification. These processes ensure personalized care that addresses your unique auditory needs. Our staff will contact you to schedule a fitting once your hearing aids arrive in the office.
If you have any further questions about the hearing aid services we provide, please give Apex Audiology a call at (719) 247-9000. You may also schedule an appointment online.
