Maico Audiological Services
There tends to be more confusion when it concerns hearing care than with many other medical specialties. We don’t need to ask, for instance, what a dentist or eye doctor can do for us. But when it comes to our hearing, we’re typically uncertain as to what we should do or which professional we should see.
So what exactly can a local hearing care professional do for you? Several things, in fact—things that could result in making your life better and easier.
Here are 6 services you should be familiar with.
1. Evaluation of hearing and balance
Hearing specialists are specifically trained in evaluating hearing and balance. If you suspect hearing loss, balance problems, or experience ringing in the ears, the local hearing professional is the go-to professional.
By carrying out professional audiological evaluations, hearing specialists can expertly establish the cause of your hearing loss or balance problems. And if your hearing loss is brought about by an underlying medical problem, hearing specialists can prepare the applicable referrals.
Also, If you have long-term ringing in the ears, known as tinnitus, some hearing specialists can supply targeted therapies.
2. Earwax removal
In some cases, what is believed to be hearing loss is nothing more than excess earwax accumulation. While it’s not the most glamorous aspect of the job, hearing specialists are trained in professional ear cleaning. If this is the cause of your hearing loss, you could start hearing better within a matter of minutes.
And always remember, it’s never safe to insert anything, including cotton swabs, into your ear canal at home. There are other proper ways you can clean your ears, such as with homemade solutions or ideally by visiting the hearing specialist.
3. Customized hearing protection
Many individuals make the mistake of first visiting the hearing specialist after they acquire hearing loss. Don’t make the same mistake. If you’re working in a noisy occupation (for example as a musician) or participate in loud activities (like hunting), you should invest in custom ear protection to protect against future hearing loss.
You could just purchase some foam earplugs at the convenience store, but they’re usually uncomfortable and create an annoying muffled sound. Custom earplugs fit comfortably in your ear and maintain the sounds you desire to hear while protecting against the sounds that result in damage.
4. Expert hearing tests (audiometry)
Hearing loss is invisible, painless, and at times challenging to acknowledge or accept. The only method to get an accurate diagnosis is with the aid of a professional hearing evaluation referred to as audiometry.
Utilizing sophisticated equipment and techniques, the hearing specialist can precisely diagnose hearing loss. Immediately after carrying out the test, the final results are printed on a chart known as an audiogram. Like a fingerprint, everyone’s hearing loss is slightly different, which will be visually represented on the audiogram.
If you can reap benefits from hearing aids, the audiogram will function as the blueprint to programming and customizing the technology.
5. Hearing aid selection and fitting
Hearing aids come in many styles, from numerous producers, equipped with countless features. Since everyone’s hearing loss and preferences are a little different, this variety is necessary—but it does make things a little overwhelming when you need to make a decision.
That’s where hearing specialists can help. They’ll help you find the hearing aid that matches your hearing loss while ensuring that you don’t waste money on functions you simply don’t care about or require.
Once you discover the ideal hearing aid, your hearing specialist will make use of your audiogram as the blueprint for customization. That way, you’ll be certain that your hearing aid maximizes your hearing based on the sounds you specifically have trouble hearing.
6. A lifetime of healthy hearing
The health of your hearing should be preserved as vigorously as any other aspect of your health. We have primary care physicians, dentists, and optometrists that help safeguard several aspects of our health on a continuing basis.
Likewise, we ought to have a dedicated professional watching out for the health of our hearing. Your relationship with your hearing specialist shouldn’t conclude following your hearing test; it should be ongoing. Hearing specialists provide a range of valuable life-long services, including hearing aid cleaning, upkeep, troubleshooting, and repair, together with advice and guidance on the latest technology.
So even though your hearing will inevitably change over time, your hearing specialist should not. If you agree to finding a local professional who cares about helping people above all else, you’ll enjoy the benefits of healthy hearing for life.