Audiology Frequently Asked Questions
Audiology & Hearing Aid services are available at our Danbury, New Milford, Norwalk and Ridgefield offices.
There is wear and tear on hearing aids. Think of the environment in which they’re used – the ear canal – there’s humidity, debris, bacteria, earwax. And though the technology does change and improve, it’s more likely that your hearing needs, and the shape of your ears and ear canals, will change over time.
During your Hearing Aid Evaluation your audiologist will:
- Explain your hearing test results
- Learn your communication needs (ie: social, occupational)
- Discuss different levels of technology and sizes of hearing aids
- Help you to establish realistic expectations
- Inform you of a 45-day trial period
Yes, and here’s the good news: most hearing losses can be helped, medically, surgically, or with hearing aids. In fact hearing aids nowadays are specifically designed for sensorineural or ‘nerve loss’.
So, if I can go to the drugstore and buy some reading glasses off the rack, why can’t I do that with a hearing aid?
Hearing aids are dispensed by licensed professionals only. Fitting a hearing aid is much more complex than fitting eyeglasses. Ears and eyes work differently. And, similar to dentures, hearing aids are a substitute for a natural function of the body. Just like dentures, or even new shoes, it takes time to get adjusted to new sensations. It doesn’t happen overnight.
Advanced Specialty Care, P.C. has qualified staff that can answer questions, perform testing and make recommendations based on findings.
Please call us at (203) 830-4705 to schedule.
Common warning signs include:
- not responding to someone talking out-of-view
- acting surprised when their name has been called
- using “what?” or “huh?” frequently
- intently watching the faces of speakers
- sitting close to the TV set when the volume is normal
- increasing the TV volume to unreasonably loud levels
- not responding to voices over the telephone
- not being startled by intense sounds
- The single most important sign of possible hearing loss in the very young child is the lack or delayed development of speech and language. If your child doesn’t seem to exhibit the above behavior, please call us for an appointment to test her/his hearing as this may indicate a hearing problem.Detection of hearing loss in children should occur as early in life as possible. Ideally, infants born with hearing loss should be identified by three months of age. The first three years of life are critical to speech and language development. Unfortunately, while some children’s hearing losses are detected within the first year of life, many more are not detected until they enter school (five to six years of age). For this reason, it is now recommended that all infants be screened for hearing impairment.
3 months: a child should startle or cry at loud noises in the environment and respond to your voice
5 Months: babies seek the sound source. Try this with your five to six month old: make soft sounds from behind and to one side as your baby looks straight ahead. Whispering should elicit a head turn towards the sound. During the first year, your baby should look for the sources of common sounds such as the telephone ringing or a musical toy.
6 Months: Babies recognize familiar voices and experiment with speech and non-speech sounds.
9 Months: Babies demonstrate an understanding of simple words (“mommy,” “daddy”) and turn and look when you call his/her name. At this age a baby should respond to “no” and changes in your tone of voice.
10 months: a baby’s babbling should sound “speech-like” (“da-da-da-da”).
12 months:, one or more recognizable words emerge and a child should understand the names of some simple items like “ball” or “spoon”.
15 months: a child should respond to simple directions and say some simple words.
By 18 months, babies should understand simple phrases; retrieve familiar objects on command and point to body parts (“where’s your nose?”). They should have a spoken vocabulary of between 20-50 words and short phrases (“no more,” “go out,” “mommy up”).
By 24 months, a toddler’s spoken vocabulary should be 200-300 words coupled with simple sentences. A toddler should be able to sit and listen to read-aloud storybooks.
Between three and five, spoken language should be used constantly to express wants, reflect emotions, convey information, and ask questions. A preschooler should understand nearly all that is said. All speech sounds should be clear and understandable by the end of the preschool period. Be alert to situations where your child is not responding well, as this may be a sign of hearing impairment.
Advanced Specialty Care is proud to have had a neonatal hearing-screening program in effect at Danbury Hospital. As of July 1st, 2000, all babies born in Connecticut hospitals will have their hearing evaluated by state mandate before leaving the hospital.
Our audiologist are skilled in the diagnosis of hearing impairment in children of all ages. Our ear specialists have had intensive training in treating hearing loss. We can provide the most up to date hearing aids and assistive listening devices.