Q&A

Subject: My daughter has hearing problem and she is 2 years old

From: HR

Dear Sir, My daughter is using hearing aid behind the ear type and she is also taking speech therapy over here in Karachi, Pakistan but still I think it is little obsolete. If there are any recent developments please e mail me. We are very wide open regarding any of your suggestions, as the most important thing is our daughter's hearing skills. Thanking you, HR

There certainly are a number of advances in hearing aid technology. The behind-the-ear type of aid offers the most flexible fitting system for most young children. Especially during the years when they frequently outgrow earmolds, it is most convenient to be able to simply replace the ear piece. Though many of these children will ultimately be able to wear the one piece units that fit in the ear with quite good success, during the growing years, it means that you might have to replace the hearing aid periodically to keep it fitting and functioning properly.

The newest technologies use a digital signal processor inside the hearing aid to constantly monitor and adjust the amplification to the particular requirements of the listener. They are fairly costly ($2500-3500 each) so you need to keep in mind the degree to which the child can be responsible for the devices.

In speech, more and more companies are producing therapy materials which are interactive through the computer. You might see if your speech pathologist has access to some of these materials. Once you have the investment in a computer, the materials are quite reasonable and many are "shareware" meaning that they are available at little or no cost.

Another source for references on professionals in this field and for general consumer information is through the American Speech and Hearing Association. They are the national credentialing organization in the USA and they have quite an extensive consumer help line. They can be reached at www.asha.org.

Stay in touch.
Solveig