Hearing is a critical part of the way people experience the world. Unfortunately, hearing loss is a problem that roughly 13% of Americans over the age of 12 deal with. Air conduction and bone conduction hearing aids can help to address different kinds of hearing loss. Learn how air conduction and bone conduction aids work and when each is appropriate.
Understanding Air Conduction vs Bone Conduction
Because hearing is so natural to most people (until there is a problem), many don’t think about how our bodies and minds process sounds. Understanding these mechanisms can make a big difference in treating hearing loss.
Air Conduction
Air conduction is the process by which sound waves travel through the air and reach the outer ear. When those waves hit the outer ear, they proceed through the ear canal, vibrating the eardrum and the bones in the middle ear. Then the inner ear converts the stimuli into electrical signals that the brain processes as sounds. An air conduction hearing aid amplifies those sound waves and delivers the enhanced sound to the ear.
Bone Conduction
With bone conduction, vibrations pass through the bones in the skull and then to the inner ear, bypassing the outer and middle ear. A bone conduction hearing aid converts sounds into sensations in the skull that travel to the ear, recreating the sound without the use of the outer or middle ear. These hearing aids can be surgical implants that are attached to the bone, or non-surgical units that utilize an adhesive to stick to the skin near the bone or a headband or glasses to hold the aid in place.
Advantages and Disadvantages
There are benefits and drawbacks to using each type of hearing aid. When considering air conduction units, there is often better sound quality compared to bone conduction options. It is also easier to find and use hearing aids that conduct sound through air since they are the more common variety. Patients can also get many extra features, including microphones and Bluetooth receivers.
One drawback of air-conducted hearing aids is that sometimes they produce feedback. These aids are also best for sensorineural hearing loss and may not be as useful for other types of hearing loss. People who are prone to inner ear infections may also have issues with air conduction hearing aids since many models sit inside the ear.
Bone conduction hearing aids are useful for people with conductive hearing loss, mixed hearing loss and single-sided deafness. There is also less risk of inner ear infections since the aid is outside of the ear canal.
Some patients with bone conduction hearing aids do report lower sound quality than those with air conduction aids. Bone conduction units are also less convenient to wear, requiring either surgical implantation or careful placement to work properly.
Get the Right Air Conduction or Bone Conduction Hearing Aids
For people dealing with hearing loss, finding the right hearing aid can drastically change their quality of life. If you aren’t sure which type of hearing aid you need, the HEAR Center can help. Reach out today for the guidance you can trust.
References:
https://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/statistics/quick-statistics-hearing
https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/deafness-and-hearing-loss
https://publichealth.jhu.edu/2021/hearing-loss-and-the-dementia-connection#:~:text=Hearing%20loss%20can%20make%20the,brain%20to%20shrink%20more%20quickly.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK207836/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8161441/
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/difference-between-bone-conduction-headphones-air-jerry-song/
https://www.earbudszone.com/bone-conduction-vs-air-conduction/
https://www.hearcenter.org/services/audiology/
https://www.mountsinai.org/health-library/symptoms/sensorineural-deafness
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