What is the difference between Daily Wear and Extended Wear (Lyric) Hearing aids?
With hundreds of different hearing aids on the market, it can be difficult to know what the right solution is for you. Some terminology you may have heard lately is “daily wear” hearing aids versus “extended” wear hearing aids. What does this mean? And what are the advantages of each?
Daily Wear Hearing Aids
Daily wear hearing aids are aids which you insert and remove every day yourself. They come in two styles, behind the ear and in the ear, and are available from a multitude of manufacturers. Daily wear hearing aids require battery changing every 3-10 days or recharging each night, as well as occasional cleaning and maintenance. Daily wear hearing aids are the most common and readily available type of device. Hearing Sense are an Independent clinic and are not owned by a manufacturer and so have access to hundreds of daily wear choices.
Extended Wear Hearing Aids
An extended wear hearing aid is a device that is inserted into your ear canal by a specially trained Hearing Clinician, and remains in position 24/ 7 for up to three months at a time. Once in the ear, an extended wear hearing aid does not require battery changing or cleaning. Extended wear hearing aids can only be fit by a Hearing professional with specialised training. At present, there is only one type of extended wear hearing aid – the Lyric. Hearing Sense is currently the Key Opinion Leader Winner for Lyric for Australia 2018, and is one of only two Premier Elite Lyric Providers in Adelaide.
Which One Is Right For Me?
There are advantages to each category of hearing aid. The most common are detailed below.
Daily Wear Hearing Aid Advantages:
- Variety. There is a larger selection of daily wear hearing aids available, which gives the wearer a wide variety of cost and style options.
- Fewer Appointments. Once programmed for your hearing loss, a daily wear hearing aid can be maintained independently and with an annual checkup appointment.
- Independent Control. Because you can remove a daily wear hearing aid yourself, you can control when you do and don’t wear it. Going swimming? No problem. Using noisy power tools? No problem. You can remove your hearing aid and reinsert it once you’re finished.
- Connectivity. There are a variety of hearing aids that can connect to your mobile phone and TV. So this means you can wirelessly stream sound direct to your hearing aid. This gives you more independent control over your hearing aid settings and improved sound clarity and volume when streaming.
- Cost. If you hold a pension or hold a Department of Veteran’s Affairs card, you may be eligible for a subsidy on daily wear hearing aids. Even if you don’t, daily wear hearing aids span a wide variety of price points.
Extended Wear Hearing Aid Advantages:
- Management. Some wearers may not be able to manage a hearing aid independently, or simply don’t want to worry about it. An extended wear device removes the need for insertion, battery changing / recharging and cleaning.
- 24/7 Hearing. We can shut our ears off, so why would we want to shut our hearing aids off? An extended wear device allows for hearing 24 hours a day. Not only is this important for the health of our hearing system, it’s is a great advantage for those who live alone, care for others at night and/or need to hear important signals (e.g. the phone ringing, alarms) at all times of the day.
- Tinnitus. Tinnitus refers to a sound in our ears which does not come from the environment around us. For a lot of people with tinnitus, it is most noticeable at night when they are trying to sleep. While daily wear hearing aids can help to alleviate tinnitus during the day, extended wear hearing aids can continue that relief into the night.
- Brain advantage – Recent studies show that Lyric has a positive effect on cognitive decline with the 24/ 7 stimulation
- Appearance. The Lyric hearing aid is 100% invisible. Not only is it the most discreet hearing aid on the market, it won’t interfere with your glasses or hair.
- Sound Quality. The Lyric hearing aids sits deeper in your ear canal than a daily wear hearing aid. It also uses a unique sound processing strategy. As a result, Lyric users often report a hearing quality closer to their natural hearing.
- No wind noise. The Lyric sits so deep in the canal that wind noise is not an issue which is a great solution for outdoor sports such as golf, bike riding or running.
Deciding on the right hearing aid for you is a highly personalised process and one best performed with an Independent Hearing Professional. If you have any questions or would like further information don’t hesitate to call or book a consultation at one of our clinics. Simply call 8331 8047 to book your free appointment. You also have the opportunity to trial Lyric or a daily wear aid for 30 days for free.
