The life of your hearing aids is based on a few things. First is the age of the devices. The older the hearing aids are the more outdated the technology. Hearing aid manufacturers usually improve technology in some way every year. These changes usually include an improvement in how the aids can manage background noise and provide better speech clarity. You probably won’t notice a big difference in the first few years, but you probably will notice a significant improvement in ease of listening and in clarity of speech when your hearing aids reach around 4 to 6 years old.
The second thing is your hearing. Most people’s hearing does get worse over time, but usually it is a slow change and many hearing aids can be adjusted to match that change. However, if your hearing decreases a lot you may need new devices that can give you more power to meet your new levels of hearing.
Wear and tear on hearing aids can also cause your hearing aids to be weak and sound distorted. Depending on the age, they may be able to be repaired. If your hearing aids are 7 years old or older though, the cost can be significant. Like many, you may want to choose to upgrade to improved technology at that time instead.
Karen Lemme, Au.D.
