Question
My 6 year old son has a profound unilateral hearing loss since birth. Although, it was not diagnosed until a year ago. I was told by his aud. and ENT that cross-aides don''t help at this age and because he has nerve damage and such a evere loss it is unaidable. At school they installed a whole room FM Soundfield System which helped tremendously. I have done a lot of research, and there is not a lot of conclusive evidence that a personal FM trainer would work better than the Soundfield. Also, I ran across a study where they fitted older kids that had minimal loss with hearing aides and they all reported success. So, my ? is what info. do you have on aiding profound unilateral loss and which FM systems provide optimal advantages? Also, is there any other things we could explore that may help my son? His language skills so far are age appropriate, thus we were shocked to discover the loss. Thank you for your time.
Answer
First, I must commend this parent for being so knowledgeable and seeking out help for their son. The failure rate for children with untreated unilateral hearing loss is about 35%. The research does show that CROS hearing aids will not help in the classroom environment nearly as much as a personal or sound field FM system. Concerning which is better - the personal or sound field system, there isn't much research. Certainly, the personal system would offer a much better signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) so I personally would start there if the child would successfully wear it. The SF system would be my second choice, but I would strongly consider the child's feelings in this matter.
Hope that helps. Carl C. Crandell, Ph.D. Dept. of Communication Sciences & Disorders/ Institute for the Advanced Study of Communication Processes 352A Dauer Hall PO BOX 117420 University of Florida Gainesville, FL 32611 OFFICE: (352) 392-2041, Ext. 283 LAB: (352) 392-2046, Ext. 225 FAX: (352) 846-0243
Carl C. Crandell, PhD, CCC-A
Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Florida
DR. CARL CRANDELL received his bachelor’s degree and master’s degree from Florida State University and obtained his doctorate with honors from Vanderbilt University in 1989. He is currently a Professor of Audiology at the University of Florida. Dr. Crandell’s research has focused on the areas of listening, communication, and speech perception in pediatric, hearing-impaired, and elderly listeners. He has also conducted considerable research on hearing aid and classroom amplification technologies. This research has led to numerous publications, presentations at scientific meetings, book chapters, and grant funding. He is a highly sought after lecturer, who has presented over 200 seminars on his research areas.
Related Courses
1https://www.audiologyonline.com/audiology-ceus/course/making-sports-accessible-to-student-30633Making Sports Accessible to Student Athletes with Hearing LossThis course provides data from surveys sent to youth and young adults with hearing loss who participated in High School and College athletics as well as audiologists who work with this age group. Data provide motivation for the need for a resource providing guidance related to the rules surrounding technology use in sports, the laws promoting accessibility, and strategies for assisting high school athletes with the transition to college level sports and a link to a resource is provided.textual, visual
This course provides data from surveys sent to youth and young adults with hearing loss who participated in High School and College athletics as well as audiologists who work with this age group. Data provide motivation for the need for a resource providing guidance related to the rules surrounding technology use in sports, the laws promoting accessibility, and strategies for assisting high school athletes with the transition to college level sports and a link to a resource is provided.
2https://www.audiologyonline.com/audiology-ceus/course/assessing-auditory-functional-performance-goals-33024Assessing Auditory Functional Performance: Goals and Intervention Considerations for Individuals with Hearing LossFunctional auditory assessment and continuing assessment is critical in order to determine the current level of function, develop appropriate goals for intervention, and achieve maximum outcomes. Learning to listen drives everything else: speech intelligibility, language competence, reading, academics, and life-long learning. This course offers a detailed look at functional auditory assessment and intervention, to provide audiologists with a better understanding of hearing loss in children in terms of the broader speech, language, learning and academic contexts. Additional videos to demonstrate key points will be included.auditory, textual, visual
Functional auditory assessment and continuing assessment is critical in order to determine the current level of function, develop appropriate goals for intervention, and achieve maximum outcomes. Learning to listen drives everything else: speech intelligibility, language competence, reading, academics, and life-long learning. This course offers a detailed look at functional auditory assessment and intervention, to provide audiologists with a better understanding of hearing loss in children in terms of the broader speech, language, learning and academic contexts. Additional videos to demonstrate key points will be included.
3https://www.audiologyonline.com/audiology-ceus/course/seminars-children-auditory-access-37383Learning for Children with Auditory Access Needs: Insights Gained During COVID, presented in partnership with Seminars in HearingRemote learning for deaf and hard-of-hearing students during COVID resulted in both predictable and unpredictable challenges as well as some expected benefits. During this presentation, we will focus on communication access modifications in the use of remote microphone (RM) systems as well as other access accommodations.auditory, textual, visual
Remote learning for deaf and hard-of-hearing students during COVID resulted in both predictable and unpredictable challenges as well as some expected benefits. During this presentation, we will focus on communication access modifications in the use of remote microphone (RM) systems as well as other access accommodations.
4https://www.audiologyonline.com/audiology-ceus/course/school-audiology-and-community-partnerships-30988School Audiology and Community Audiology PartnershipsThis course will focus on the critical partnership between educational/school audiology and community audiology services. Issues that maximize educational and communication outcomes for school-aged children will be highlighted.auditory, textual, visual
This course will focus on the critical partnership between educational/school audiology and community audiology services. Issues that maximize educational and communication outcomes for school-aged children will be highlighted.
5https://www.audiologyonline.com/audiology-ceus/course/pediatric-connectivity-beyond-the-phone-39445Pediatric Connectivity: Beyond the PhoneLearn about the different types of connectivity and how to integrate hearing devices with video game systems, educational tools, and a variety of accessories. This course discusses how to counsel/instruct patients to pair and use their devices with more than a phone.auditory, textual, visual
'I learned what I needed to know, but wish there were more specifics regarding Phonak and Oticon aids, as those are the companies that most pediatric patients use'Read Reviews
Learn about the different types of connectivity and how to integrate hearing devices with video game systems, educational tools, and a variety of accessories. This course discusses how to counsel/instruct patients to pair and use their devices with more than a phone.
