Advancement in Hearing Aids Could Help Thousands

For the longest time hearing aids have basically been a “one size fits all” style of dealing with the problem. Due to the complicated technology behind hearing aids it was nearly impossible to fine tune them to what a specific patient needed; fortunately some newly developed software may let doctors do just that.

The project was led by a research team at the University of Essex that began researching after realizing that nearly all hearing aid patients had numerous complaints. What they found is that current hearing aid technology simply amplifies sounds rather than analyzing or separating sound. As a result they set out to fix this through adjustable and customizable software settings that would be applied to hearing aids.

The idea behind the software is that it would work much like a tailor does with clothing; the software would allow doctors to accurately determine which sounds and pitches need more amplification or assistance and through minor adjustments these small changes would lead to significant improvements in hearing. The software design is reportedly finished and functions just as well as anticipated according to the college research team.

Unlike many other projects like this one the hearing aid customization project is actually moving towards a real world application as well. Numerous hearing aid companies have begun working to implement the adjustable settings into their hearing aids so sometime in the near future it will likely be possible to purchase adjustable and customizable hearing aids that can be tweaked to match your needs.

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