Open Fit Hearing Aid Earpiece Types

Open fit hearing aids leave a portion of your ear canal unfilled when wearing your hearing aid, allowing air and natural sound to enter your ear. Open fittings also allow some amplified sound to exit the ear canal. This combination of mechanical hearing and your natural hearing creates better sound quality, less sound reverberation, less echo and greater overall satisfaction with hearing aids.

In the Ear

• Open fit describes the earpiece or ear mold used when wearing a hearing aid, the same hearing aid could be made into a closed fitting by attaching a different earpiece. Open fittings only work for patients with high-frequency hearing loss, which is usually caused by exposure to loud noise. The most common symptom of high-frequency hearing loss is trouble understanding conversation, speech and words, especially in the presence of background noise. People with high-frequency hearing loss can still hear noise, low frequencies, like base tones, and hear better in quiet. Having only high-frequency hearing loss takes away the need for amplification of base sounds via your hearing aid. An open fit earpiece allows natural base tones to enter your ear--without amplification--and high frequencies get amplified through your hearing aid. This process produces more natural sound quality.

Stock

• Behind-the-ear hearing aids consist of a hearing device--it could be the size of your little finger or as small as your thumb nail--and a thin, clear tube connecting the device to an earpiece. The earpiece inserts into your ear canal, the device lays behind your ear. Open fit earpieces for behind-the-ear devices range from tiny silicone buds, domes or flowers to foam or cushion material pieces. All these earpieces are stock, meaning generic, sizes sent from the manufacturer designed to attach onto the tube end of your hearing device. The hearing health-care provider fitting your hearing aid will look at your ear canal size and determine if the small, medium, large or extra-large dome would fit you best.

  Pre-sized silicone ear buds work well for most patients; they're comfortable and allow a good amount of natural sound to flow in and out of your ear canal, improving your ability to hear without making you uncomfortable. Foam or cushion earpieces don't always allow for a truly open fit; if you feel plugged up, hear echoing or feel like you're talking down in a drum while wearing your hearing aid, talk to your hearing health-care provider about trying a truly open ear dome.

  Silicone ear buds are designed to stay in your ear by fitting in the bend of your ear canal. If the tubing is too short or the ear bud too small on your hearing aid, the earpiece will continually slide out of your ear canal, and you'll find yourself pushing it back in throughout the day. This should be brought to the attention of your hearing health-care provider. You may need a larger size ear bud or a custom-made open fit ear mold.

Custom

• A mold can be taken of your ear canal and a custom open earpiece made for your hearing aid. Custom molds go deeper into your ear canal—increasing high-frequency sounds—and they fit the exact shape of your ear canal. A custom, open fit ear mold is attached to the same tube on the behind-the-ear hearing device.

  Open fit completely in the ear canal (CIC) hearing aids can be custom made. If you prefer a tiny in- the-canal hearing aid over a behind-the-ear device and would benefit from an open fit, discuss in-the- ear open fit hearing aids with your hearing health-care provider. Completely in the ear canal hearing aids are custom made; a mold of your ear canal is taken and sent to the manufacturer for custom design.