The vent effect in instant ear tips and its impact on the fitting of modern hearing aids

Forfattere

  • Sueli Aparecida Caporali Sound and Fitting, WS Audiology A/S, DK-3540 Lynge, Denmark
  • Jens Cubick Sound and Fitting, WS Audiology A/S, DK-3540 Lynge, Denmark
  • Jasmina Catic Sound and Fitting, WS Audiology A/S, DK-3540 Lynge, Denmark
  • Anne Damsgaard Sound and Fitting, WS Audiology A/S, DK-3540 Lynge, Denmark
  • Erik Schmidt Sound and Fitting, WS Audiology A/S, DK-3540 Lynge, Denmark

Nøgleord:

instant tips, vent effect, real ear ocluded response, oclusion ratings

Resumé

Today, approximately 70-80% of hearing aid fittings are made with instant ear tips. This may be due to ease of fit, improved physical comfort and the reduction in occlusion compared to custom earmolds. These tips can be completely open, vented, or closed. The acoustic properties of the ear tip depend on its type, size and the fit to the individual ear canal. Depending on the resulting real ear occluded gain (REOG) and vent effect (VE), the sound quality and aided benefit provided by the hearing aid may vary among individuals fitted with the same ear tip type. This study explored five Widex instant ear tips both in relation to REOG and VE using real ear measurements on 60 ears and in relation to subjective occlusion ratings. The results showed a large variation in REOG and VE both between ear tips and across subjects within the same ear tip type, and a high correlation between VE and perceived occlusion. These results imply that the acoustics of instant tips need to be assessed and considered as part of the hearing aid fitting process to ensure that fitting targets are matched.

Referencer

Caporali, S. A., Schmidt, E., Eriksson, Å., Sköld, B., Popecki, B., Larsson, J., and Auriemmo, J. (2013). “Evaluating the physical fit of receiver-in-the-ear hearing aids in infants”, J. Am. Acad. Audiol., 24(3), 174–191.

Dillon, H. (2012). Hearing aids, Thieme, New York.

Hallenbeck, S. A., and Groth, J. (2008). “Thin-tube and receiver-in-canal devices: There is positive feedback on both!”, Hear. J., 61(1), 28–30.

Hearing Review (2019). “Hearing Aid Sales Increase by 3.8% in First Half of 2019”, Retrieved September 12, 2019, from http://www.hearingreview.com/2019/07/hearing-aid-sales-increase-3-8-first-half-2019/

Jespersen, C. T., and Møller, K. N. (2013). “Reliability of real ear insertion gain in behind-the-ear hearing aids with different coupling systems to the ear canal”, Int. J. Audiol., 52(3), 169–176.

Keidser, G., Carter, L., Chalupper, J., and Dillon, H. (2007). “Effect of low- frequency gain and venting effects on the benefit derived from directionality and noise reduction in hearing aids”, Int. J. Audiol., 46(10), 554–568.

Kiessling, J., Brenner, B., Jespersen, C. T., Groth, J., and Jensen, O. D. (2005). “Occlusion effect of earmolds with different venting systems”. J. Am. Acad. Audiol., 16(4), 237–249.

Kuk, F., and Baekgaard, L. (2008). “Hearing Aid Selection and BTEs : Choosing Among Various “ Open-ear ” and “ Receiver-in-canal ” Options”, Hear. Rev., 15(3), 22–36.

Kuk, F., and Keenan, D. (2006). “How Do Vents Affect Hearing Aid Performance ?”, Hear. Rev., 13(2).

Kuk, F., and Nordahn, M. (2006). “Where an Accurate Fitting Begins : Assessment of In-Situ Acoustics (AISA)”, Hear. Rev., 13(7), 34–42.

Martin, R. L. (2008). “BBs: The hearing aids of the near future”, Hear. J., 61, 46–48. Mueller, B. H. G., and Ricketts, T. A. (2006). “Open-canal fittings : Ten take-home tips”, Hear. J., 59(11), 24–39.

Mueller, H. G., Ricketts, T. A., and Bentler, R. (2017). Speech mapping and probe microphone measurements, Plural Publishing.

Pohlman, A. G., and Kranz, F. W. (1926). “The influence of partial and complete occlusion of the external auditory canals on air and bone transmitted sound”, Ann. Otol., Rhinol. Laryngol., 35(1), 113–121.

Smith, P., Mack, A., and Davis, A. (2008). “A Multicenter Trial of an Assess-and-Fit Hearing Aid Service Using Open Canal Fittings and Comply Ear Tips”, Trends Amplif., 12(2), 121–136.

Stenfelt, S., Wild, T., Hato, N., and Goode, R. L. (2003). “Factors contributing to bone conduction: The outer ear”, J. Acoust. Soc. Am., 113(2), 902–913. Sullivan, R. F. (2018). “A Simple and Expedient Method to Facilitate Receiver-in-Canal (RIC) Non-custon Tip Insertion”, Hear. Rev., 25(3), 12–13.

Winkler, A., Latzel, M., and Holube, I. (2016). “Open Versus Closed Hearing-Aid Fittings: A Literature Review of Both Fitting Approaches”, Trends Hear., 20, 1–13.
Auditory Learning in Biological and Artificial Systems

Yderligere filer

Publiceret

2020-04-23

Citation/Eksport

Caporali, S. A., Cubick, J., Catic, J., Damsgaard, A., & Schmidt, E. (2020). The vent effect in instant ear tips and its impact on the fitting of modern hearing aids. Proceedings of the International Symposium on Auditory and Audiological Research, 7, 205–212. Hentet fra https://proceedings.isaar.eu/index.php/isaarproc/article/view/2019-25

Nummer

Årg. 7 (2019): Auditory Learning in Biological and Artificial Systems

Sektion

2019/4. Novel directions in hearing-instrument technology

Licens

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

a. Authors retain copyright* and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.

b. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.

c. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).

*From the 2017 issue onward. The Danavox Jubilee Foundation owns the copyright of all articles published in the 1969-2015 issues. However, authors are still allowed to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.