The Audiology Condition

by Cliff Olson, AuD Multiple times a week I am asked, “are Costco hearing aids any good?”.  After all, it is natural to question whether or not buying a medical device at a big box store it a smart idea.  Depending on who you ask, it seems as though individuals who purchased their hearing aids at Costco either LOVE them

Editor’s Note: While the HHTM editorial team takes the week off for the holidays, we hope you enjoy this post. Originally published on July 3, 2018, this post received more views than any other article at the Audiology Condition in 2018.   Approximately 15 percent of American adults over the age of 18 experience some level of hearing loss today

Costco now accounts for approximately 12% of the United States hearing aid market.  No doubt this is largely in part to their Kirkland Signature brand hearing aids. However, the feature that makes these devices so popular is also the feature that makes consumers question their capabilities – the price.    At $1,600 a pair, consumers are right to question the

by Cliff Olson, AuD Depending on who you talk to, pursuing hearing treatment at a Costco is either a terrific idea or a horrible one.  You hear success stories where their hearing aids are virtually indistinguishable from hearing aids that cost twice as much. You also hear horror stories about how poor their hearing aids perform compared to ones that

Editor’s Note: Due to the significant growth of Third Party Administrators and Hearing Aid Referral Networks in recent years, there has been increasing interest in this topic among hearing professionals. Today Alyson McBride, from HearStore, offers her perspective on the subject and what makes her company different. The views below are her own.   by Alyson McBride Over the past

by Cliff Olson, AuD “Hearing aids just amplify all sounds.” “I turn up the volume on the tv an I still can’t hear it clearly so hearing aids won’t work for me.” “I purchased a ‘hearing aid’ from the corner store and it just made everything louder” These are common misconceptions of what hearing aids are actually intended to do.

by Joe Fleming Approximately 15 percent of American adults over the age of 18 experience some level of hearing loss today and nearly three-quarters of those adults could benefit from using hearing aids. While it’s easy to blame issues like chronic noise exposure for the number of people experiencing hearing loss, it’s important to understand that there are a number

by Alyson McBride As an invisible sense, hearing is not something we often don’t pay much attention to until something drastic happens. Only when we experience overly loud sounds do we cover our ears or reach for those little foam ear plugs. On a day to day basis, many of us stream music and podcasts from earbuds on our commutes

What is Auditory processing disorder? Auditory processing disorder (APD), also known as Central Auditory Processing Disorder (CAPD), is a complex auditory perception disorder that affects the brain’s ability to process and interpret auditory information. It is important to understand that APD is not a result of a hearing loss or a problem with the ears themselves, but rather a difficulty in

Perhaps the largest area of difficulty for individuals with hearing loss is understanding speech in background noise.  However, your ability to understand speech with hearing aids in a noisy environment shouldn’t be a mystery. Audiologists have had a way to estimate your level of performance in these environments for years.   Evaluating Performance in Background Noise using Speech-In-Noise Testing