Hearing aid - Hochouki (English spelling) Hearing aid

Japanese: 補聴器 - ほちょうき（英語表記）Hearing aid

What it's like

A hearing aid is a device that amplifies sound and is used by people with hearing loss to hear sounds. It is merely a tool to compensate for hearing loss and does not normalize hearing itself.

Why can you hear with a hearing aid?

Voice, which is the medium of conversation, is made up of various sound waves, but they have a certain magnitude (the amount of energy) and frequency (the pitch of the sound). Conversational Bandwidth ( Global Warming ) This is called (Figure 22).

Roughly speaking, sounds range from 30 to 80 dB (measured in decibels, the same unit used for hearing levels; the higher the number, the louder the sound), and there are loud sounds (such as vowels) and quiet sounds (such as consonants). At a hearing level of 30 dB or above, it becomes difficult to hear normal conversation sounds, and the worse your hearing becomes, the more you will need a hearing aid.

In this case, a hearing aid amplifies sounds that the hearing-impaired person cannot hear so that they can hear them. However, if there is almost no hearing remaining, no matter how much the hearing aid amplifies the sounds, they will not be able to hear them.

Hearing aids require adjustments

Hearing aids can help people with hearing loss to hear, but it is not the case that the louder the sound, the better. Sounds that are too loud are not only uncomfortable for the ears, but can also damage the auditory nerve and cause hearing loss. For this reason, it is necessary to adjust the sound so that it is not too loud (maximum sound pressure adjustment).

In addition, it is necessary to adjust the amplification (frequency response adjustment) according to the degree of hearing loss, ranging from low-frequency sounds (buzzing, vibrating sounds) to high-frequency sounds (metallic or ringing sounds). If you want to improve your hearing in particular, it is effective to amplify high frequencies.

Precautions when using hearing aids

Unlike vision (glasses), hearing (hearing aids) requires subtle adjustments because the sounds we want to hear are not constant, and the environmental noise varies by location and time, and in extreme cases, can vary instantaneously.

Recent digital hearing aids have improved considerably in terms of sound quality processing, etc., compared to traditional analogue hearing aids. However, unlike vision, hearing requires getting used to it, so they do not necessarily satisfy everyone.

In hearing aid rehabilitation, you will need to adjust the hearing aid several times every 1-2 weeks to check whether any sounds were too loud or difficult to hear. After these adjustments, you will be able to use the hearing aid in your daily life with the best hearing.

There are currently about 500 types of hearing aids. Recently, open-type hearing aids for people with mild hearing loss are on the rise. However, you can only try out a few types. If it is completely impractical, you will need to try out a different hearing aid, so don't forget to get a second opinion from a hospital or hearing aid retailer.

If you have any concerns while using the product, don't forget to consult us immediately.

Jun Kono

Figure 22. Speech band and classification of hearing loss
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Figure 22. Speech band and classification of hearing loss

Source: Houken “Sixth Edition Family Medicine Encyclopedia” Information about the Sixth Edition Family Medicine Encyclopedia

Japanese:

どんなものか

　補聴器とは、難聴の人が音声を聞き取るために使用するもので、音声を増幅する機器です。あくまでも聴覚障害を補うための道具にすぎず、聞き取りそのものを正常にするものではありません。

なぜ補聴器で聞き取れるのか

　会話の媒介である音声は、さまざまな音波からなりますが、一定の大きさ（エネルギーの大小）と周波数（音の高低）をもっています。これを会話帯域(かいわたいいき)（図22）といいます。

　大まかにいうと、大きさでは30～80㏈（デシベルという単位で、聴力レベルの単位と同じ。数が増えるほど大きい音）の範囲に分布しており、大きい音声（たとえば母音）もあれば小さい音声（子音など）もあります。聴力レベルが30㏈以上では、普通の会話音が多少なりとも聞き取りにくくなり、聴力が悪くなるほど、補聴器が必要となります。

　この際、難聴者が聞き取れない音声を聞き取れるような大きさに増幅するのが補聴器です。しかし、ほとんど聴力が残っていない場合には、どんなに補聴器で音声を増幅しても聞き取ることはできません。