The Role of Real-Ear Measurements in Hearing Aid Fittings

Audiologists need to consider many different factors when assisting individuals with hearing aids. They need to consider the level of hearing loss the patient is experiencing, the size of their ear, their personal needs with hearing aids and so on. So, in order to help them in this process, audiologists need to take real-ear measurements (REM) to help them fine-tune the hearing aids to their patient’s needs and preferences.

Real-ear measurements offer valuable insights into the sound levels within someone’s ear canal when wearing hearing aids. This helps an audiologist tweak the settings in order to get the sound as natural as possible, and to also provide any additional settings that may be useful for the individual, such as improving the clarity and volume of speech.

Fine-Tuning Hearing Aids to Match the Level of Hearing Loss

Everyone experiences different levels of hearing loss. Audiologists need to fine-tune the settings of each hearing aid to ensure that it provides adequate amplification for the patient wearing it. However, it’s important not to use subjectivity in this situation. Simply asking the patient if it’s loud enough or clear enough doesn’t help much, so audiologists need to use objective measurements.

This is where real-ear measurements come in handy. A device is hooked onto the patient’s ear, and a small probe is inserted into the ear which continuously monitors sound. This device allows the audiologist to carefully assess the patient’s hearing aid function inside of the ear canal. It can also be used to ensure that a hearing aid is fitted correctly into the patient’s ear to ensure that there is no sound loss.

These objective measurements can help ensure that your hearing aids are configured correctly. If your hearing aids aren’t set properly, then it can lead to sound loss, low quality amplification and generally become more difficult to wear.

Customizing the Amount of Amplification for the Individual Patient

Since everyone’s ear canal is different, their hearing characteristics also change. Real-ear measurements can be used for objective analysis, but wearers may still have preferences in how they want to hear specific sounds or the volume that they prefer the most.

Hearing aids accommodate this by having customizable profiles that can be changed at the push of a button. Some of these settings can be configured to make speech clearer, while others can be focused on eliminating background noises such as wind and traffic. This leads to personalized amplification for individual patients, and it’s one of the best ways to ensure that you are getting the best possible experience with your hearing aids.

Your audiologist will ask you a few questions regarding your hearing aids once your ears have been analyzed. You can choose to amplify certain sounds, reduce frequencies if needed and also assign these to different profiles so that you can switch between them whenever you like. This provides a much better overall experience for the patient and ensures that their hearing aids fit their needs.