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Honiton hearing centre for all 2019 hearing aids

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Honiton hearing centre, for the very latest digital hearing aids.

Looking for information on how what hearing aids would suit you or what you need? Book an appointment with the Honiton hearing centre and have a full spectrum hearing test done. Once the test has completed Colin Eaton will sit with you and discuss the results. Once they results are know he will then go through what the different types of hearing aids (if any needed) are good for your hearing loss. There are many hearing aids available form many different manufacturers. The Honiton hearing centre are an independent hearing centre, covering the whole of Devon and Somerset. We are not affiliated to any manufacturer so can offer you what you need rather to what we sell. We can access all the major manufactures hearing aids for you to choose from.

Click here to watch what type of  hearing aids do you need?

Honiton Hearing News:

New Hear-it Report Documents Extraordinary Costs of Hearing Loss in EU

Published on February 27, 2019

hear-it_tw_400x400

In the EU, untreated hearing loss costs 185 billion Euro–each year. –hear-it.org

A new scientific report, “Hearing Loss – Numbers and Costs”, concludes that untreated, disabling hearing loss costs 185 billion Euros (US$211 billion) in the EU each year. This represents 8,200 Euros  (US$9335) each year per person with an untreated disabling hearing loss.

The detailed findings and conclusions in the report will be presented at a lunch debate at the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium, on the March 6 in connection with the WHO World Hearing Day on the 3rd of March.

The report was carried out for the non-profit organization, hear-it AISBL, by Professor Emerita Bridget Shield with the assistance of Professor Mark Atherton at Brunel University in London. In 2006, Professor Bridget Shield compiled the first report for hear-it AISBL, “Evaluation of the Social and Economic Costs of hearing Impairment.”

How they arrived at the 185 billion Euro figure. According to the report, lower quality of life due to disabling hearing loss costs the EU 130 billion Euros (US$148 billion) each year. Lost productivity in society due to a higher unemployment among people with a disabling hearing loss costs 55 billion Euros ($63 billion) each year in the EU. In total, this is 185 billion Euros. The cost does not cover extra health care costs caused by hearing loss. A disabling hearing loss is defined by the Global Burden of Disease research group (GBD) as a hearing loss of 35 dB or greater.

In Europe as a whole—including non-EU countries—untreated, disabling hearing loss costs 216 billion Euros (US$246 billion) each year, says the researchers.

Honiton hearing centre for all 2019 hearing aids

The report documents that the use of hearing aids and other hearing solutions improves health and increases quality of life. It also documents that people with an untreated, disabling hearing loss are at greater risk of social isolation, depression, cognitive decline and dementia, while people who treat their hearing loss do not experience a higher risk than people without hearing loss.

There are 34.4 million people with a disabling hearing loss (35 dB or greater) in the EU. More than 22.6 million are not treated for their disabling hearing loss as only around 1 in 3 in Europe with a disabling hearing loss use hearing aids or other hearing solutions. This is more than the combined population of Austria, Finland, Ireland, and Lithuania. With a steadily aging population who live longer and with an earlier onset of hearing loss due to increased noise exposure, this growth will increase even further in the years to come, warns Hear-it.

Honiton hearing centre for all 2019 hearing aids

A meta study. The report, “Hearing Loss–Numbers and Costs”, is a meta study which has analyzed and compared hundreds of scientific studies and papers in the last two decades about the prevalence and the consequences of hearing loss and the use and benefits of hearing aids, according to the organization.

Kim Ruberg

Kim Ruberg

“The scientific report clearly demonstrates that untreated hearing loss is a major health issue and that untreated hearing loss has a huge economic and social impact on our society,” said Secretary General Kim Ruberg, hear-it AISBL, on the organization’s website. “It also documents that checking your hearing and treating hearing loss pays, both for the individual and for society.”

Check your hearing. World Hearing Day is held by the WHO on the 3rd of March each year to raise awareness of how to prevent deafness and hearing loss and promote ear and hearing care across the world. The theme for World Hearing Day 2019 is “Check your hearing”.

Honiton hearing centre for all 2019 hearing aids

“If you think you might have a hearing loss, my best advice is to get your hearing checked,” says Ruberg. “You can start by checking your hearing using the WHO “Check your hearing” app, or test your hearing online at www.hear-it.org. But if you suspect that you have hearing problems my best advice is that you get a real hearing test carried out by a hearing professional,” says Ruberg.

Source: Hear-it

Honiton hearing centre, Devon

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Honiton hearing centre, Devon

 

 

Honiton hearing centre caters for all types of hearing loss and ear wax removal. Colin Eaton, the lead audiologist at the Keynsham hearing centre has over 15 years audiology expertise to make sure his clients get the best hearing result no matter what the hearing issues are.

Ear wax removal is available by appointment and a limited amount of out of hours appointments are available but please call Sam on reception if you require out of hours.

Comprehensive hearing tests are also available. Please make sure that any ear wax issues are clear before you take the test, if you need ear wax removing prior the test please call reception and make this clear to Sam that you will need ear wax clearing first.

If you are confused on what hearing aids are for and for what type of hearing loss, please watch our new video here that explains why so many different types of hearing aids there are.

 

Honiton hearing centre, News

Researchers Restore Hearing via Gene Therapy in Deaf Mouse Model

Published on 

In collaboration with the universities of Miami, Columbia, and San Francisco, scientists from the Institut Pasteur, Inserm, CNRS, Collège de France, Sorbonne University, and the University of Clermont Auvergne have managed to restore hearing in an adult mouse model of DFNB9 deafness, a hearing disorder that represents one of the most frequent cases of congenital genetic deafness, Institut Pasteur announced on its website. Individuals with DFNB9 deafness are profoundly deaf as they are deficient in the gene coding for otoferlin, a protein which is essential for transmitting sound information at the auditory sensory cell synapses. By carrying out an intracochlear injection of this gene in an adult DFNB9 mouse model, the scientists successfully restored auditory synapse function and hearing thresholds to a near-normal level. These findings, published in the journal PNAS, open up new avenues for future gene therapy trials in patients with DFNB9.

Honiton hearing centre Devon

The left panel is a schematic representation of the human ear. Sound waves are collected by the outer ear made up of the pinna and ear canal. The middle ear, composed of the eardrum and ossicles, transmits sound waves to the inner ear, which features the cochlea – the hearing organ responsible for transmitting auditory messages to the central nervous system. The right panel shows an immunofluorescence image of the auditory sensory epithelium within an injected cochlea. The inner hair cells have been stained for otoferlin in green. Otoferlin is detected in almost all of these cells. The inset is a high magnification area showing an inner hair cell that has not been transduced. © Institut Pasteur

The left panel is a schematic representation of the human ear. Sound waves are collected by the outer ear made up of the pinna and ear canal. The middle ear, composed of the eardrum and ossicles, transmits sound waves to the inner ear, which features the cochlea – the hearing organ responsible for transmitting auditory messages to the central nervous system. The right panel shows an immunofluorescence image of the auditory sensory epithelium within an injected cochlea. The inner hair cells have been stained for otoferlin in green. Otoferlin is detected in almost all of these cells. The inset is a high magnification area showing an inner hair cell that has not been transduced. © Institut Pasteur

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Over half of nonsyndromic profound congenital deafness cases have a genetic cause, and most (~80%) of these cases are due to autosomal recessive forms of deafness (DFNB). Cochlear implants are currently the only option for recovering hearing in these patients.

Adeno-associated viruses (AAVs) are among the most promising vectors for therapeutic gene transfer to treat human diseases. AAV-based gene therapy is a promising therapeutic option for treating deafness but its application is limited by a potentially narrow therapeutic window. In humans, inner ear development is completed in utero and hearing becomes possible at approximately 20 weeks of gestation. In addition, genetic forms of congenital deafness are generally diagnosed during the neonatal period. Gene therapy approaches in animal models must therefore take this into account, and gene therapy efficacy must be demonstrated following a gene injection when the auditory system is already in place. In other words, therapy must reverse existing deafness. The team led by Saaïd Safieddine, a CNRS researcher in the Genetics and Physiology of Hearing Unit (Institut Pasteur/ Inserm) and coordinator of the project, used a mouse model of DFNB9, a form of human deafness that represents 2-8% of all cases of congenital genetic deafness.

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DFNB9 deafness is caused by mutations in the gene coding for otoferlin, a protein that plays a key role in transmitting sound information at the inner hair cell synapses. Mutant mice deficient in otoferlin are profoundly deaf as these synapses fail to release neurotransmitters in response to sound stimulation, despite the absence of detectable sensory epithelial defects. DFNB9 mice therefore constitute an appropriate model for testing the efficacy of viral gene therapy when it is administered at a late stage. However, as AAVs have limited DNA packaging capacity (approximately 4.7 kilobase (kb)), it is difficult to use this technique for genes whose coding region (cDNA) exceeds 5 kb, such as the gene coding for otoferlin, which has a 6 kb coding region. The scientists have overcome this limitation by adapting an AAV approach known as dual AAV strategy because it uses two different recombinant vectors, one containing the 5’-end and the other the 3’-end of the otoferlin cDNA.

A single intracochlear injection of the vector pair in adult mutant mice was used to reconstruct the otoferlin coding region by recombining 5′ and 3′-end DNA segments, leading to long-term restoration of otoferlin expression in the inner hair cells, and then restored hearing.

Honiton hearing centre, Devon

The scientists have therefore obtained initial proof of the concept of viral transfer of fragmented cDNA in the cochlea using two vectors, showing that this approach can be used to produce otoferlin and durably correct the profound deafness phenotype in mice.

The outcomes achieved by the scientists suggest that the therapeutic window for local gene transfer in patients with DFNB9 congenital deafness could be wider than thought, and offers hope of extending these findings to other forms of deafness. These results are the subject of a patent application filed.

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In addition to the institutions mentioned in the first paragraph, this research was funded by the French Foundation for Medical Research, the European Union (TREAT RUSH), and the French National Research Agency (EargenCure and Lifesenses LabEx).

Original Paper: Akil O, Dyka F, Calvet C, et al. Dual AAV-mediated gene therapy restores hearing in a DFNB9 mouse model. PNAS. 2019. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1817537116

Source: Institut Pasteur, PNAS

Image: Institute Pasteur

Best place to buy your hearing aids, Devon

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Best place to buy your hearing aids, Devon

Devon hearing aid centre is based at Honiton and run by Colin and Sam Eaton.  Offering a full service including hearing tests, ear wax removal (using Micros-Suction) and the fitting of the latest digital hearing aids for the Devon area including Exeter and Sidmouth.  The Honiton hearing centre can sometimes fit in early appointments through cancellations, so always ask to see if there are any early appointments needed for Ear Wax removal.  Please mention this when you book an ear wax removal appointment.

To see how we remove ear wax please watch our video here.

Devon hearing news:

Widex Announces TV PLAY and RedDot Award Honor

Original story by The Hearing Review

Widex TV PLAY.

Widex A/S, Lynge, Denmark, the privately-owned Danish hearing aid company, has announced the launch of WIDEX TV PLAY™, a high-end TV accessory and streaming solution for WIDEX EVOKE™ hearing aids. The sleek and versatile TV PLAY received the Red Dot Design Concept Award last Friday, September 28, for its pleasing design.

Devon hearing aids

WidexWidex has also been honored as a leader in innovation in the RedDot Design Ranking for Design Concepts. The company placed number 4 out of 15 companies in the Americas and Europe region in recognition of its pursuit of design excellence over the past 5 years, reports the company.

Shipments of TV PLAY will start in November.

A valuable accessory for hearing aid users. A 2017 Nielsen survey1 reported that the US 65+ population consumes a daily average of 6 hours and 57 minutes of TV. Despite the growing number of mobile and web-based streaming services, watching TV is more popular than ever. But for some, it’s a struggle to hear the TV. Hearing aid users can find it hard to hear the TV over the other sounds in the room. In fact, some studies suggest that 78% of hearing aid users have trouble understanding things on the TV.

Cheap hearing aids in Devon

Designed for ease of use. According to Widex, TV PLAY lets hearing aid users enjoy great TV sound effortlessly through their hearing aids by providing direct streaming to both ears. TV PLAY is designed for fast and easy to set up, intuitive to control, and delivers outstanding and stable sound.

TV PLAY drops the “boxy” look of many TV streamers and instead has a futuristic design that blends in with modern homes. And if you prefer to have TV PLAY out of sight, the slim and discrete design fits behind flat screen TVs with no trouble, according to the company.

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“At Widex we work to ensure that hearing aid users get the most of all aspects of life,” said Widex President and CEO Jørgen Jensen in a press statement. “We know that TV is an important part of staying in touch with the world around them through news and entertainment programs. TV PLAY gives them a better and more stable experience that also looks great in their living rooms.”

Maximum streaming stability. With Widex’s patent-pending dual-antenna technology, TV PLAY is said to offer maximum streaming stability. An easy-to-use app lets users balance the volume of the TV sound with ambient sounds and conversations—or choose just to hear the sound from the TV.

1. Nielsen. Total Audience Report Q2 2017. November 16, 2017. Available at: https://www.nielsen.com/us/en/insights/reports/2017/the-nielsen-total-audience-q2-2017.html

Source: Widex A/S

Hearing aids East Devon

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Hearing aids East Devon

The Honiton hearing centre

 

Hearing aids East Devon, at the Honiton hearing centre run by Colin and Sam Eaton. Digital hearing aids have changed beyond recognition in the last 5 years. If you are using older hearing aids or have been using NHS hearing aids and would like to try the latest discreet digital hearing aids with connectivity with your mobile phone, tablet and T.V. Honiton hearing offer a free trial. Please contact Sam on reception. We use Phonak, GN ReSound, Oticon and other manufacturers hearing aids.

Ear wax removal Devon

The Honiton hearing centre also conduct ear wax removal using Microsuction and the traditional water irrigation technique. You can watch our video here to see how we do this and how painless and quick it really is.

Honiton hearing news:

Researchers Identify Gene Associated with Age-related Hearing Loss

 

Mouse study reveals contributor to hearing loss

An international group of researchers, led by Ronna Hertzano, MD, PhD, associate professor, Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM), and Michael Bowl, PhD, program leader track scientist, Mammalian Genetics Unit, MRC Harwell Institute, UK, have identified the gene that acts as a key regulator for special cells needed in hearing.

The discovery of this gene (Ikzf2) will help researchers better understand this unique type of cell that is needed for hearing and potentially develop treatments for common age-related hearing loss, UMSOM announced.

“Outer hair cells are the first inner ear cells lost as we age,” said Hertzano, whose research will be published in the journal Nature. “Age-related hearing loss happens to everyone. Even a 30-year-old has lost some of the outer hair cells that sense higher pitch sounds. Simple exposure to sound, especially loud ones, eventually causes damage to these cells.”

The inner ear has two kinds of sensory hair cells required for hearing. The inner hair cells convert sounds to neural signals that travel to the brain. This compares to outer hair cells, which function by amplifying and tuning sounds. Without outer hair cells, sound is severely muted and inner hair cells don’t signal the brain. Loss of outer hair cells is said to be the major cause of age-related loss of hearing.

About the Research

Hertzano’s group, in collaboration with Ran Elkon, PhD, senior lecturer, Department of Human Molecular Genetics and Biochemistry, Sackler Faculty of Medicine in Tel Aviv, Israel, took a bioinformatics and functional genomics approach to discover a gene critical for the regulation of genes involved in outer hair cell development. Bowl’s group studied mice from the Harwell Aging Screen to identify mice with hearing loss. Bowl identified mice with an early-onset hearing loss caused by an outer hair cell deficit. When the two groups realized that they were studying the same gene, they began to collaborate to discover its biological function and role in outer hair cell development. The gene is Ikzf2 gene, which encodes helios. Helios is a transcription factor, a protein that controls the expression of other genes. The mutation in the mice changes one amino acid in a critical part of the protein, which impaired the transcriptional regulatory activity of helios in the mice.

To test if helios could drive the differentiation of outer hair cells, the researchers introduced a virus engineered to overexpress helios into the inner ear hair cells of newborn mice. As a result, some of the mature inner hair cells became more like outer hair cells. In particular, the inner hair cells with an excess of helios started making the protein prestin and exhibited electromotility, a property limited to outer hair cells. Thus, helios can drive inner hair cells to adopt critical outer hair cell characteristics.

Hearing aids East Devon

Funding for the research was provided by Action on Hearing Loss UK, the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) at the National Institutes of Health, and the Department of Defense (DOD).

As Professor Steve Brown, PhD, director, MRC Harwell Institute, said, “The development of therapies for age-related hearing loss represents one of the big challenges facing medicine and biomedical science. Understanding the genetic programs that are responsible for the development and maturation of sound-transducing hair cells within the inner ear will be critical to exploring avenues for the regeneration of these cells that are lost in abundance during age-related hearing loss. The teams from the University of Maryland and the MRC Harwell Research Institute have given us the first insights into that program. They have identified a master regulator, Ikzf2/helios, that controls the program for maturation of outer hair cells. Now, we have a target that we can potentially use to induce the production of outer hair cells within damaged inner ears, and we are one step closer to offering treatments for this disabling condition.”

Original Paper: Chessum L, Matern MS, Kelly MC, et al. Helios is a key transcriptional regulator of outer hair cell maturation. Nature. November 21, 2018.

Source: University of Maryland School of Medicine, Nature

Image: University of Maryland School of Medicine

Interesting hearing aids Devon U.K.

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Interesting hearing aids Devon U.K.

 

Honiton hearing news from around the world:

We are always looking at events and new innovations from around the world. Today we are sharing a company that are available in the U.S. and now the U.K.

Sivantos Launches New Form Factor with Signia Styletto SLIM RIC

Original story by the Hearing Review

Signia Styletto

Signia Styletto

Why should a hearing aid look like a hearing aid? That’s the question Sivantos engineers asked themselves when designing the new Signia Styletto receiver-in-the-canal (RIC) hearing aid which is being launched today. Styletto is a rechargeable SLIM RIC that features a contemporary design and breaks the mold of traditional behind-the-ear (BTE) hearing aids by taking advantage of how its lithium-ion battery technology doesn’t need to conform to the traditional size and shape of a button cell. The new RIC, which uses the Signia Nx platform with Own Voice Processing (OVP), also comes with an extremely small charger which offers fast charging solutions as well as three full charges on the go.

“There are people who look at a hearing aid and really don’t see it matching their style,” says Eric Branda, AuD, director of product management at Sivantos Inc, Piscataway, NJ. “We see all these people wearing large Bluetooth headsets flashing on their ears—huge devices on their ears—and yet [the hearing industry has] struggled to get them to adopt hearing aids, and I think it really comes down to the fact that we keep asking them to wear what looks like a hearing aid.”

StylettoPinDesign

Styletto uses a slim-pin design instead of the current coin or button-cell design.

Stylistic freedom by thinking outside the button cell. In terms of the history of hearing aids, Branda points out that, going all the back to the original body-worn devices and moving into today’s CIC and RIC devices, hearing aid sizes and styles have been dictated by the size and shape of button cell batteries. Although lithium-ion rechargeable batteries have also been built in this coin design, they’re not restricted to it—as demonstrated by the new Styletto SLIM RIC. Instead, it departs from the traditional coin cell look by using a slim pin design to create a new form factor.

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“With today’s battery technology, we can take a new approach,” says Branda. “Rather than being discreet by being invisible, we can be discreet and drive acceptance withvisibility, which is a novel approach for people with hearing loss.”

Differentiating a hearing aid practice by appealing to different wearers. With its slim, elegant design that harkens to other high-tech product categories, Styletto provides a new option for those who might be put off by the traditional look of a hearing aid. In a US study of 500 mostly new users (92%) with moderate hearing loss, Sivantos found that when participants were given a choice between traditional BTE (Motion) or RIC (Pure) designs, or given the option of no hearing aid at all, more than half (57%) opted for the RIC, 19% selected the BTE, while almost one-quarter (24%) chose to go without a hearing aid. However, when the new Styletto was inserted into the study as an option, 90% of the participants selected a hearing aid: 65% of the study participants selected the SLIM RIC design, while about equal percentages opted for either the BTE and RIC (13% and 12% respectively), and only 10% chose no hearing aid at all.

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Similarly, when consumers looked at a simulated practice storefront window with a standard portfolio, only about 16% of the participants chose an offering without Styletto, while 84% of people chose an offering with the new aid.

Branda says that this indicates Styletto provides dispensing professionals with a new product that aligns more closely with patients’ style and view of themselves. “It may come down to the fact that people know what a hearing aid looks like,” he says. “But, when they see Styletto, they think ‘I can see myself wearing that and it doesn’t make me look like a hearing aid wearer.’”

Recharging case for Styletto.

Recharging case for Styletto.

Portable rechargeability for the wearer. The Styletto’s recharging case is very small, and reportedly offers 19 hours of full-day use with a 3-hour charge. If the wearer forgets to charge the device, they can drop it into the charger for 30 minutes and be able to use the device for 5 hours, says the company. The charger also carries three additional full charges. Thus, if the user starts out in the morning with a full charge and the charger is fully charged, they actually have four days of portable battery capacity available to them, according to Sivantos. The charger also contains an LED indicator to view the status of the charging, as well as an automatic on/off feature which means that the charger can serve as the primary carrying case.

The Styletto charger/charrying case is exceptionally small and carries 3 full charges.

The Styletto recharging/carrying case is exceptionally small and carries 3 full charges.

Nx technology. The Styletto hearing aid uses Signia Nxsignal processing which is designed to emphasize a natural experience using Sivantos’ Own Voice Processing (OVP) technology. Signia’s ear-to-ear wireless (Ultra HD e2e®) is used in OVP as well as the hearing aid’s Narrow Directionality for a more natural sound quality and better speech intelligibility in noise. The wireless technology also enables the device’s Twin Phone capabilities, which allows the wearer to place the phone up to the ear, obtain the acoustic signal, and then the hearing aid wirelessly sends the signal to the opposite ear for binaural advantage during the phone call.

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The sleek instrument does not have push-buttons or a volume control. For those who want more control, the touchControl®App is a downloadable cell phone application that allows for the changing of volume, programs, and directionality. Similarly, miniPocket™, which resembles a keychain type remote control, allows for volume and program changes.

Styletto is available in all three of the Nx performance levels (7/5/3) and uses a Size M (60/119) receiver in lengths 2 and 3. The device is applicable for people with mild to moderately severe losses (60 dB gain).

For more information, visit pro.signiausa.com

Hearing aids for the Devon area

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Hearing aids for the Devon area

 

Honiton hearing centre is a premium independent hearing centre based in the East of Devon. Family run and lead by Colin Eaton a specialist audiologist for many years.

If you are suffering with blocked ears or think you may need a hearing test please book in with Sam on reception. Colin is a fully qualified hearing aid dispenser and can show you how to connect any recent digital hearing aid to your iPhone, iPad etc. Please ask Colin for his sound advice when it comes to T.V. streaming to your hearing aid.

Based in Honiton the hearing centre covers the whole of Devon from Ilfracombe to Lyme Bay and beyond.

 

Honiton hearing news:

Oticon Announces Five New Opn Custom Solutions Styles

Ear wax removal, Devon ear wax removal, Lyme bay ear wax removal, Charmouth ear wax removal, hearing aids east Devon,

Lyme bay and Charmouth hearing aid centre and ear wax removal

Oticon announced the launch of five new custom hearing aid styles, including what is said to be the “smallest hearing aid style Oticon has ever produced,” using BrainHearing™  and Opn’s technology to support the brain in making sense of sound and enabling users to identify where sounds are coming from, even in challenging environments.

Oticon Opn Invisible-in- Canal hearing aid (IIC)

Oticon Opn Invisible-in-Canal hearing aid (IIC)

“The variety of Opn Custom styles, functionalities, and features combined with Oticon’s groundbreaking open sound experience provides hearing care professionals with even more Opn choices for their patients, especially those who are reluctant to try hearing aids,” says Don Schum, PhD, Oticon vice president of audiology. “For many first-time users, the appeal of an invisible hearing solution, our smallest IIC ever, may be the catalyst for taking action to address their hearing loss.”

No Compromise on Quality, Reliability, Performance

Opn Custom hearing aids are said to break through some of the challenges faced by people with hearing loss: understanding speech in noise and handling multiple speakers, according to Oticon. The custom lineup includes styles with 2.4 GHz low-energy Bluetooth® connectivity that offer wireless possibilities.The miniaturization of all components can help enable more functionality in less space, resulting in fewer compromises and more modeling freedom to support a better physical fit and a higher fit rate. The effect and availability of Opn Custom features varies with hearing aid style and prescription.

Oticon Opn and Siya

Oticon Opn and Siya

Lyme bay, Devon, hearing aids and Ear wax removal

The new Oticon Siya amplifies the detail of sounds, which can enable users to be able to follow conversations in noisy environments. Oticon BrainHearing technology and a chip that reportedly processes sound 50 times faster than Oticon’s previous generation of essential hearing aids are said to deliver high-resolution sound quality to improve speech understanding.

Hearing aid video at Honiton hearing centre

With 2.4 GHz Bluetooth low-energy technology, Siya is said to be the “first hearing aid” in the essential category to allow wireless connectivity with low battery consumption to modern smartphones, TVs, and other Bluetooth®-enabled devices. Siya comes in a complete lineup of styles, ranging from invisible custom styles to power hearing aids.

Oticon Siya

Oticon Siya

Charmouth hearing aids, ear wax removal

HearingFitness™ is a new tool, available in Oticon’s proprietary ON App, to help people with hearing loss understand how they can optimize their hearing health behavior to take full advantage of their hearing aids. Users of internet-connected Oticon Opn and Oticon Siya hearing aids can use HearingFitness to track how long they wear their hearing aids and receive notifications and prompts to help them reach their wearing goals and track the noise levels they are frequently exposed to. The new tool can be especially useful for first-time users who find it difficult to adapt to wearing hearing aids.

For more information on the new Oticon Opn Custom solutions and the extended Oticon Opn family, visit www.Oticon.com/OpnCustom. For information on Oticon Siya, visit www.Oticon.com/Siya. For information on the Oticon ON App with the new HearingFitness tool, visit www.Oticon.com/HearingFitness.

Source: Oticon

Images: Oticon

Devon hearing aids Honiton

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Devon hearing aids

 

Hearing aids at the Honiton hearing centre covering Lyme bay and East Devon areas.

 

The Honiton hearing centre are a truly independent small hearing company based in the East of Devon. Colin Eaton the lead audiologist was the Chairman of AHIPP the professional body of hearing experts. Covering the East of Devon including Tiverton, Cullompton, Honiton, Lyme Bay, Sidmouth and beyond.

Hearing test

Our comprehensive hearing tests are conducted with the latest hearing and digital audiology equipment. Please go here to watch our hearing test video. If you feel you need a hearing test them please call Sam on reception to book an appointment.

Digital hearing aids

We pride ourselves on dispensing the very latest digital hearing aids supplied by the leading hearing aid manufacturers. The digital hearing aids of today are more advanced than you could imagine. They connect wirelessly with your mobile phone, iPad, and T.V. just ask Colin Eaton our lead audiologist to advice you on hearing aid connectivity.

 

Honiton hearing News:

 

Widex Announces New Insights into EVOKE Hearing Aid’s AI Function

Published on 

Honiton hearing aids, Devon

Hearing aids in Tiverton and Lyme Bay Devon

Widex announced the first data gathered from the WIDEX EVOKE™ hearing aid, which is said to achieve “a new level of Artificial Intelligence (AI)” through machine learning, and is helping to bring new insights into how users are taking control of their sound environment to improve their hearing experience, according to the company.

Denmark-based Widex launched the WIDEX EVOKE hearing aid in April. The hearing aid is reportedly the first to give users the ability to employ real-time machine learning that can solve the tricky hearing problems that users face in their daily lives.

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“We launched WIDEX EVOKE with SoundSense technology to put users back in control of the most difficult hearing situations,” said Jens Brehm Nielsen, data science & machine learning architect at Widex. “And we can see that EVOKE users have taken the opportunity to do that and, in the process, are helping us understand more about them. That information will help us to make the EVOKE and future hearing aids even better.”

SoundSense Learn is an AI system, because AI is said to refer to systems that solve tasks humans are inherently good at—such as driving a car, doing the dishes, etc. SoundSense Learn expands into entirely new applications by helping end users adjust their hearing aids in the moment, reportedly something that no humans can replicate to the same degree of accuracy, according to Widex.

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The SoundSense Learn smartphone app is connected to the EVOKE hearing aids and uses machine learning to guide users in optimizing the settings to their exact needs. The app gathers a variety of anonymous data such as how often they turn the volume up or down, which sound presets they use, and how many custom settings they create—including those made with SoundSense Learn.

What’s in a tag?

Tagging of custom settings has proved to be one of the interesting pieces of data generated by EVOKE.

“We found that many people have created a setting and tagged it with, for instance, ‘work’ which suggests that it is something that our end users need and want,” said Nielsen. “And from SoundSense Learn we already have an idea of how they like the settings.”

Some hearing aids give users the ability to customize their sound experience by adjusting frequency bands to boost or cut bass, middle or high tones. Adjusting frequencies works well in many situations once the initial settings have been set by a skilled audiologist. However, some situations are so complex that hitting the right combination of adjustments can be difficult.

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“Widex hearing aids are well known for the quality of their sound,” said Nielsen. “But SoundSense Learn has added an extra layer of quality sound on top of that by using a machine learning algorithm together with reinforcement learning—the two key ingredients in state-of-the art AI algorithm, that enables the algorithm to learn in the moment.

“The algorithm learns an optimal setting every time a user finds the sound to be a little below expectations in a given sound environment. It learns these settings by simply asking the user to compare two settings that are carefully picked by the algorithm. This allows it to learn an optimal setting in a new environment very fast.”

By collating and analyzing the anonymous data WIDEX EVOKE will continue to become even smarter as time passes.

Source: Widex

Image: Widex

Ear wax removal, Honiton Devon, Lyme bay

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Hearing aids, Honiton Devon & Lyme bay

Hearing aids and ear wax at Honiton Hearing Centre

 

Ear wax can be a debilitating condition if not treated. Your hearing will suffer and you maybe become less involved in your surroundings. Not being able to hear properly really can be a pain in the ear in more ways than one. At the Honiton hearing Centre we can asses your ears, if there is ear wax to be removed then we can do this painlessly and very quickly using Micro-Suction. You don’t feel anything at all and it can be done very very quickly by Colin Eaton the lead audiologist at the Honiton hearing centre.

Ear wax removal

Book an appointment and we can soon sort out any hearing issues or ear wax issues. Todays hearing aids/instruments really are breathtaking on how they have evolved in the last 5 years. These digital hearing aids are something else when it comes to connectivity. They will connect to your iPhone, Android phone and wearable digital watches. Ask us to give you more information.

Ear wax removal for the Lyme Bay area Devon

 

Honiton hearing News:

 

Phonak Launches Marvel with Universal Binaural Streaming and New Level of Sound Quality

Phonak has launched its new Audéo Marvel receiver-in-the-canal (RIC) hearing aid which brings binaural sound to virtually any form of Bluetooth streaming—IOS, Android, or otherwise—with a unique sound classification technology yielding audio quality that impressed a group of industry experts and hearing aid users last week during a special media event and sneak-peek of the device at the company’s US headquarters in Warrenville, Ill, near Chicago. Based on the third version of Phonak’s Sonova Wireless One Radio Digital (SWORD) chip, the Audéo M is also designed to place the user at the center of the audiological process with an array of new Smartphone apps, remote fine-tuning, and sound processing capabilities, says Phonak US President Jan Metzdorff.

PARC Research Audiologist Lori Rakita, AuD, explains how the AutoSense OS 3.0 technology classifies streamed media in real-time for optimized listening.

PARC Research Audiologist Lori Rakita, AuD, explains how the AutoSense OS 3.0 technology classifies streamed media in real-time for optimized listening.

New levels of binaural sound quality and universality. One key feature that immediately jumps out in Audéo M is its sound quality. For real audiophiles and others accustomed to hi-fi systems, the sound quality in today’s hearing aids is very good, but can still prompt them to ask why the devices can’t sound like stereo headphones. Of course, the problem—which has been around even before made-for-iPhone (MFi) systems became available—stems primarily from the venting of the aid for real-life environmental speech and sounds. This provides the important natural sound benefits associated with open-fit aids, but has required a trade-off in streamed sound quality. With the Audéo M, Phonak has reinserted a clear richer sound into streamed music, TV, or other devices via hearing aids—and demonstrated fairly dramatic differences in a paired comparison test. The system features AutoSense OS 3.0 which reportedly classifies streamed media for optimized listening.

Barb VanSomeren, Lori Rakita, Kailen Berry, AuD, Jan Jan Metzdorff, Christine Jones, AuD, Anna Nicole Klutz, AuD, and John Urbaniak at Phonak US headquarters near Chicago.

Phonak staff members Barb VanSomeren; Lori Rakita, AuD; Kailen Berry, AuD; Jan Metzdorff, Abby Poyser, AuD; Christine Jones, AuD, Nicole Klutz, AuD, and John Urbaniak at Phonak US headquarters near Chicago.

“We have the first classifier that also operates on the streamed signal,” said Christine Jones, AuD, Phonak US vice-president of Audiology and director of the Phonak Audiology Research Center (PARC) in Warrenville during a presentation at the media event.  “Some of the early work we did highlighted that there was an opportunity with streaming—as with the unique listening environments that can also be encountered by patients—where someone’s preferences may be very different than when listening to streamed speech, or dialog in media, movies, etc. Listening goals can be different, and sound quality preferences can be different. So, now we are not only classifying the environmental sounds, but we can also classify those streamed sounds to deliver the best possible experience under all listening conditions.”

Although the advanced design of the previous Audéo B-Direct model is award-winning, it does not feature binaural streaming. With the new Audéo M, wearers can now binaurally stream audio content, including smartphone calls, music, eBooks, and more, to both ears from any Bluetooth device.

Phonak points out that iPhones account for only 13% of smartphone use worldwide compared to 86% for the Android OS, and wearers’ choices have been limited primarily to hearing aids that utilize the MFi protocol. Additionally, even with IOS-compatible devices, some forms of MFi hearing aid streaming (eg, streaming from MacBooks and iMacs) were unavailable until now. SWORD 3.0 is capable of running Bluetooth Classic, Bluetooth LE, AirStream Technology (for TV), and Binaural VoiceStream Technology for high-speed data transmission between the two hearing aids in a binaural fitting. The new system even works with Siri and LiveListen. (Phonak’s proprietary Roger 2.4 GHz signal will also have direct streaming capabilities to the hearing aid next fall.)

“This means we now have universal binaural wireless connectivity,” said Dr Jones.  “In order to have the best access to speech on the phone, it’s best to hear well with both ears. And, beyond that, we are the only product that now connects to not just Apple and Android, but any Bluetooth device. This opens up a new world of connectivity for people because of its universal nature…What this means is, that in those cases where something is not accessible through the Apple iPhone or device, it should be accessible through the hearing aid.”

Jones explained that Phonak has also created a sophisticated system called “Environmental Balance” that controls how users hear the streaming in addition to how they hear the surrounding environment, both of which can still be adjusted via the basic volume control. All of this has the potential to open up even more of the popular streaming applications.

Packshot_Audeo_M-R_P5_pairAudéo Marvel wearers also benefit from hands-free Smartphone operation. Previously, hearing aid wearers using the MFi (and future ASHA) protocol needed to hold the smartphone up to their mouths and talk into the phone’s microphone to converse. The new hearing aids feature microphone inlets built directly into the housing, allowing wearers to have phone conversations by literally talking through their hearing aids.

Better processing and noise reduction, reducing cognitive load.Additionally, the enhanced SWORD OS incorporates Binaural VoiceStream Technology™ into Marvel hearing aids, a technology most recently employedin Advanced Bionics’ Naida CI sound processor. This four-microphone technology is reportedly capable of improving speech understanding by up to 60% in noisy places like restaurants, while simultaneously reducing the amount of effort by 19% required to listen and understand.1,2

“Audiology is at the heart of everything we do at Phonak,” said Sonova Group VP Martin Grieder in a press statement. “That’s why Marvel is such a game-changer for our industry. Marvel technology empowers people and provides a true ‘love at first sound’ experience. We believe the sound quality is second to none, and it begins the moment the person puts the hearing aids on.”

PhonakAudéoMarvel

Phonak Audéo Marvel mini-charger.

Lithium-ion rechargeable technology for “a full day of streaming.” While no reliable statistics exist on the market penetration of rechargeable hearing aids, most experts estimate that about 17-20% of all hearing aids now feature rechargeability. Phonak has been a pioneer in rechargeable hearing aid technology, creating in 2016 the first lithium-ion hearing aids—a technology that appears to be gaining ground with hearing aid manufacturers.

According to Phonak, Marvel hearing aid wearers can enjoy a full day of hearing aid use—including streaming— on a single charge. The Audéo M rechargeable hearing aid also offers new features, automatically turning on or off when taken out or being placed into the charger. The system includes new LED lights and a new mini charger.

Remote fine-tuning and live voice-to-text transcription apps. With Marvel hearing aids comes the introduction of a suite of convenient smart apps. The myPhonak app allows wearers to have their hearing aids adjusted in real-time, in any situation, anywhere via videocall by the hearing care professional. It also gives consumers the ability to rate their hearing aid satisfaction in various environments and directly send this feedback to their hearing care professional.

The myCall-to-Text app reportedly provides live transcription of phone calls from the other party in more than 80 languages. This provides an extremely useful option for hearing aid users in noisy environments, or for people who prefer additional visual captions when using the phone.

New marketing campaign and rollout. A suite of marketing materials has been developed to promote the Marvel launch. Phonak US Vice-president of Marketing Barb VanSomeren explained that the marketing surrounding Marvel emphasizes its multifunctionality, providing consumers with access to the world of sound that we all want via enhanced sound quality, a constellation of devices and streaming options, and phone calls. The new marketing assets highlight Phonak technology, audiology leadership, and Marvel’s diverse capabilities, and includes a video series that features two women exploring all the different ways Marvel can be used in a contemporary format (eg, the women’s dialog resembles the TV show Grace and Frankie) .

The rechargeable Audéo M-R will be available in November along with the zinc air Audéo M-312, and Phonak will add the Audéo M-312T and Audéo M-13T in February 2019. A rechargeable version of Marvel with T-Coil (Audéo M-RT) and RogerDirect functionality will be available as a firmware upgrade in Fall 2019.

 References

  1.  Field Study News about Phonak StereoZoom in preparation, available by end of 2018 at www.phonakpro.com/evidence.

  2. Winneke A, Latzel M, Appleton-Huber J. Less listening- and memory effort in noisy situations with StereoZoom. Phonak Field Study News. Available at: www.phonakpro.com/evidence

 

 

Hearing aids Devon-Honiton hearing centre

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Hearing aids in Honiton-Devon

Hearing aids in Devon at the Honiton Hearing centre. We are a family owned truly independent hearing centre based in Honiton Devon.

We supply and fit the very latest digital hearing aids from all the leading hearing aids manufacturers. We also conduct ear wax removal using Microsuction and the traditional water irrigation technique.

You can find out more about our ear wax Micro-suction removal here.

 

Honiton Hearing News:

 

GN ReSound Showcases New Partnership with Google and LiNX Quattro at EUHA 2018

ReSound LiNX Quattro.

Hearing aids Devon; Latest hearing aids at Honiton hearing-Devon

    ReSound LiNX Quattro.

With today’s start of the European Union of Hearing Aid Acousticians(EUHA) Congress in Hannover, Germany, GN ReSound has announced a new partnership with Google that will provide a full spectrum of direct streaming to hearing aids from Android devices, and the company is showcasing what the company is calling a “premium-plus” hearing aid, ReSound LiNX Quattro,™ which was previously launched in August.

Hearing aids Devon

According to ReSound, the LiNX Quattro offers “a brilliant sound experience with unprecedented Layers of Sound.” In a direct comparison, where hearing aid users were asked to listen to music and rate the sound, the company states that 95% of respondents preferred ReSound LiNX Quattro compared to other premium hearing aids.

A new high-performing chip platform drives the extensive sound quality improvements, providing 100% faster processing, twice the memory capacity, and 35% increase in frequency bandwidth compared to ReSound LiNX 3D™. With a bandwidth of up to 9.5 kHz, a greater range of high-frequency sounds is accessible to people with hearing loss. An input dynamic range of 116 dB SPL—reportedly the highest in the industry—is designed to ensure that softer sounds are clearer and louder sounds are distortion free.

Ear wax removal Devon

GN Hearing’s recently-announced partnership with Google allows it to offer a full spectrum of direct streaming from Android devices to hearing aids. It continues GN Hearing’s record of industry breakthroughs, including 2.4 GHz wireless connectivity, Binaural Directionality, direct full streaming compatibility with Apple devices, and cloud based remote fine-tuning.

Anders Hedegaard

Hearing aids Devon. Honiton hearing aid centre

Anders Hedegaard

“With the launch of ReSound LiNX Quattro, as well as other major technology launches and partnerships, GN Hearing is continuing to shape the future of hearing care,” said GN Hearing CEO and President Anders Hedegaard. “We want to help people hear more, do more, and be more than they ever thought possible. We are striving to support people living with hearing loss and hearing care professionals alike access the latest technology and support the provision of high-quality care.”

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GN Hearing has also recently launched Beltone Amaze™, which GN characterizes as the world’s most complete hearing solution that combines great sound quality, connectivity, rechargeability and remote fine-tuning. The company also recently introduced Interton Ready™, which is designed to offer great sound, ease-of-use, and connectivity at an affordable price.

Source: GN ReSound

 

 

Ear wax removal, East Devon

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Ear wax removal, East Devon

Ear wax removal East Devon, Hearing aids, hearing tests Honiton

Ear wax removal East Devon

 

Do you live in East Devon near Honiton?  In need of a hearing test or your hearing aid repaired? Or maybe you need your ear wax removed by a leading ear wax removal centre? Here at the Honiton hearing centre Colin Eaton can help with all your hearing needs.

Ear wax removal in Devon

We are experts in ear wax removal and use various techniques. Microsuction is just one way we can get out your hard impacted ear wax and the traditional water irrigation is another.  You can watch our video on Microsuction here.

 

Tinnitus therapy in Devon

DID YOU KNOW?

1 in 10 adults in the UK suffer with tinnitus.
Many of those suffering are not offered any help, and are simply told to live with it.
Tinnitus can almost always be improved for the client.

How can we help with Tinnitus?

We firstly meet with you and sit and discuss your full hearing history, work out what triggered the problem, we then talk to you about evaluating the degree of tinnitus and how it is impacting on your life, where your issues are. We normally examine the ears with our video otoscope and show you the results on our flat screen. We then carry out a puretone audiogram to assess how good your hearing is, or if there are any areas of damage (such as those caused by noise for example).

We then sit down and consult with you, armed with all the information, and work out a care plan for you, using the tools available to us as explained above.

Please call Sam or Colin for an appointment and we will fit you in as soon as possible.  We are based in Honiton East Devon but cover Exeter, Sidmouth, Seaton and beyond.

If you live in Somerset  you can always try the Keynsham hearing centre.