Better Quality of Life with Top-of-the-Line Hearing Aids
Here at Associated Hearing Professionals, we’re focused on providing you with personalized service, and that includes custom hearing aids. We have a variety of state-of-the-art, invisible hearing solutions available. Our experienced audiologists will assist you the entire way through the rehabilitative process, to ensure that you are both happy and completely comfortable with your hearing instruments. We fit the most advanced hearing instruments on the market from most major manufacturers. We also offer hearing aid repair for most brands.
Are You Interested in Hearing Instruments?
Hearing instruments improve speech understanding in various situations, and also support the many functions of human hearing. As the type and degree of hearing loss varies from person to person, and even sometimes from ear to ear, different hearing aid models are tailored to specific hearing losses. These various models were designed to take into account personal needs. We also offer hearing aid repair on most brands to ensure your equipment lasts as long as possible.
Hearing Instrument Types
In-the-Ear (ITE) Instruments
In-the-Ear (ITE) custom instruments fit entirely within the ear. These come in a variety of sizes, depending on the needs of each patient. The hearing loss, ear canal size, cosmetics, manual dexterity, and vision of the patient are all factors to consider in choosing the appropriate size. They are larger than canal hearing aids, but some find them easier to handle. The casing of the ITE is custom-built for each wearer. The custom hearing aid fittings, along with the lightweight and compact size, makes these devices comfortable and easy to manage.
Behind-the-Ear (BTE) Instruments
Behind the ear (BTE) options include devices that house all components behind the wearer’s ear. Sound enters the instrument, is amplified, and travels through a tube that is contoured over the top of the ear and into an earmold inside the ear. This technology is discreet, durable, easy to handle and maintain, and can be easily adapted for use with a wide variety of Bluetooth and assistive listening devices.
Receiver-in-Canal (RIC) Instruments
Receiver-in-Canal (RIC) devices house the processing components in a case that fits behind the wearer’s ear, and the receiver or speaker of the instrument in the ear canal. This style is one of the most common currently fit.
Fitting Hearing Aids
Our specialists take the time to understand each patient’s needs and lifestyles to match them perfectly with a hearing instrument. We are innovative and keep up-to-date with the latest technology to best serve you. After your fitting, come back to us regularly for routine care and maintenance, including cleanings and follow-up programming.
At Associated Hearing Professionals, we’re proud to offer these comprehensive services to our patients in the greater St. Louis area. We are passionate about improving your hearing and quality of life. From custom hearing aid fittings to hearing aid repair, we’re always striving to provide personalized attention. With over 70 years of combined experience, our audiologists provide the expertise you need for years of quality hearing.
Brands We Offer
At Associated Hearing Professionals, we know that every patient has unique needs. That is why our extensive inventory of hearing aids comes from a wide variety of manufacturers, including rechargeable options. The brands we offer include Lyric, Oticon, Phonak, Resound, Signia, Starkey, Unitron, and Widex, to ensure that every patient has multiple options. Along with the hearing aids themselves, we also provide support for all of our products by offering parts and batteries, as well as repairs.
We have been fitting Lyric devices since September of 2010, making us the most experienced Lyric provider in the area. Lyric is the only extended wear device on the market, and it is worn 24 hours a day and seven days a week for months at a time.
Hearing Aids – Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What should I expect from my hearing aids?
Just as eyeglasses do not “cure” vision deficiencies, hearing aids do not solve all hearing problems. Hearing instruments can provide a significant improvement in speech understanding in most environments and improve the quality of life for you and your family members. Our audiologists will help you understand how to use your hearing instruments in a variety of listening situations to optimize your benefit.
Q: What is aural rehabilitation?
Audiologists provide additional services for maximizing the performance of hearing instruments in challenging listening situations. Various approaches involve auditory training, speech reading, and improving listening skills with assistive devices.
Q: Are there any studies showing health benefits of hearing aids?
Hearing aid users report higher levels of involvement in social activities, shorter periods of depression, fewer worries, and more positive social and family experiences than those who have uncorrected hearing loss. Recently, a new survey by National Council of Aging confirmed that there is a significant improvement in the quality of lives of hearing aid users.
Q: Who can be helped?
Today, over 95 percent of patients with hearing loss can benefit from hearing aids. This benefit depends on the type and degree of loss, patient’s expectations, and type of hearing aid selected.
Q: Two hearing aids or one?
You and your audiologist should determine the need for one hearing aid or two. For more than 80 percent of people with hearing loss, binaural amplification offers substantial improvement under both quiet and noisy conditions, along with a better sense of direction for locating the sound source. Also, auditory deprivation becomes a possibility when only one ear is treated with a hearing aid. People wearing binaural hearing aids (two hearing aids) understand speech and conversation significantly better than people wearing one hearing aid do. Better understanding in groups and even noisy situations is possible with binaural hearing aids. Less volume is required out of the hearing instruments when two are used; thus battery life lasts longer. With a lower volume control setting, the chance of feedback is reduced with two hearing instruments.
To learn more about Associated Hearing Professionals, or to speak to a member of our team about an appointment, contact us today.
Associated Hearing Professionals have been meeting my needs for better hearing (thereby better living) since it opened. Margaret Juelich has been my Audiologist for at least 20 years and has constantly supplied me with the best hearing aids to meet my needs. She and her staff are very knowledgeable and make sure you are fitted with the best instruments to improve your hearing. I am very pleased with the service the give you and would never go anywhere else.
Verdie B – Chesterfield, MO 63005
April 2014