PRESS INFORMATION ________________________________________________

SOUNDS LIKE THAT COFFEE'S COLD!

New range of hearing aids from Siemens can help distinguish the subtlest sounds

Hearing the difference between hot and cold coffee being poured into a cup is a skill few people realise they have. And while it might not have much practical application it does provide a useful yardstick against which to measure hearing.

Now, thanks to a new range of hearing aids launched in the UK by industry leader A & M Hearing, even people with hearing problems can distinguish such subtle differences between very similar sounds.

The new range is called Music and uses complex micro-electronics to enable the smallest hearing aid within the range to tuck almost invisibly into the auditory canal.

A & M Hearing believes the innovative new design, which incorporates a number of advanced features, will encourage more people with hearing difficulties to take the first step towards rectifying what can range from a minor inconvenience to a real disability.

Many people have an outdated image of hearing aids, according to A & M's UK retail sales manager, Clive Moore.

Sole UK distributors: A&M Hearing Limited, Faraday Road, Crawley, West Sussex RH1O 2L5. Tel: 01293 540471 Fax: 01293 535777

"The new generation of hearing aids are inconspicuous, highly effective and technically superb," he said. "Music, developed by Siemens, has unique, digitally-programmable technology that takes hearing aid development even further forward."

According to the Royal National Institute for Deaf People (RNID) there are an estimated 8.4 million deaf and hard of hearing adults in the UK, of whom around two million wear hearing aids. The RNID calculates that at least a further two million would benefit from their use. Mr Moore points out that, like fingerprints, everyone's hearing ability is unique.

"No two people have exactly the same hearing impairment," he said. "That is why Music's digitally-programmable electronics are designed to adjust the instrument to the wearer's precise needs."

The same technology ensures that the volume remains at a comfortable level without the need for adjustments or a remote control unit because once the hearing aid has been programmed it picks up loud noises unchanged and amplifies only quiet sounds.

Deafness is a problem that is believed to be on the increase due to greater levels of noise to which everyone is exposed.

"It can overcome us so gradually that we are not always aware of it," said Mr Moore.

"Hearing tests are free and I believe it's vital that everyone, especially those most at risk from worsening hearing - the 50+ age group - should have their hearing checked at regular intervals."

A free leaflet, Better Hearing is Better Living, is available on request from A & M Hearing -call Heather Bums on 01293 540471.

If someone suffers from a hearing impairment they don't simply stop hearing everything nor continue to hear everything but at a lower volume. The title above should read 'some lesser known facts about deafness' but it has been written as a hearing impaired person might hear it if it were spoken out loud - and shouting wouldn't help either!

A hearing impaired person maintains the ability to hear certain sounds but doesn't hear others at all. Just by missing one or two letters, an entire sentence can become meaningless - or even take on a completely different meaning. As a result, loss of confidence in social or business situations often goes hand in hand with hearing impairment. Sharp sounds such as S, P, T, C, F, K and X are easiest to miss, followed by consonants - turning the volume up when speaking to hearing impaired people merely distorts the sound and makes it less clear.

· Around 10 per cent of all hearing losses can be helped medically.

· The remaining 90 per cent can be helped with hearing aids, thanks to significant technological advances.

· Most of the 8.4 million deaf and hard of hearing adults in the UK have become so with increasing age

· About two per cent of young adults are deaf or hard of hearing

· Around the age of 50 the proportion of deaf people begins to increase sharply.

· More than half - 54 per cent - of people over 60 are hard of hearing or deaf.

· From the age of 40 a higher proportion of men than women become hard of hearing (probably because more men have been exposed to high levels of industrial noise)

· Among people over 80, more women than men are deaf or hard of hearing (but only because women live longer)

Hearing can be damaged by:

· middle ear infection

· exposure to loud or constant noise

· heredity

· illness or birth defects

· the natural ageing process

· traumatic injury

· ototoxic medications

· tumours

Symptoms of hearing loss:

· difficulty hearing the television and/or on the telephone

· difficulty hearing in public places - theatre, concert halls - where sound sources are far from the listener

· 'disappearance' of sounds in the higher frequencies - women's and children's voices, birdsong

· difficulty understanding conversation within a group of people

Testing: is free

·

· is painless, comfortable and safe

· consists of answering questions about hearing, recognising everyday words at different volume levels and identifying different sounds

If you would like any further information about any aspect of deafness or hearing aids please contact Carol Nemeth or Caroline Clemson on 01273 207155.

To have your organisations news
published on these pages click here