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| Maintenance |
| A hearing aid is
a valuable device that needs to be handled
with care. Thanks to today's digital
technology it is possible to produce
very small and sophisticated in the
ear (ITE) and even smaller completely
in Canal (CIC) hearing aids. However,
it is always important to clean and
maintain a hearing aid properly to obtain
its full benefit; not only to gain the
optimum performance from the hearing
aid, but also to prolog its life. Treat
your hearing aid with care and do not
expose it to knocks or excessive pressure.
A good tip is to lean over a table when
inserting and removing your hearing
aid to reduce the dropping distance,
as it could be damaged if it falls onto
a hard floor. When you are not using
your hearing aid, turn it off, re- move
the battery and put it into its storage
case out of the reach of children and
pets. Hearing aids should never be exposed
to high temperatures or moisture. Consequently
there are situations where you should
not wear hearing aids, such as while
showering or swimming, during radiation
treatment, or when using a hair dryer,
hair spray or other sprays. |
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| Care |
| Whatever the type
of hearing aid, water or other fluids
should not be used to clean it. Instead,
clean the surfaces of the hearing aid
with a soft, dry cloth and use the special
brush and tool supplied with the aid
to clean around the sound outlet, microphone
opening and vent. Hearing aids are extremely
susceptible to problems caused by earwax.
Even a small amount of earwax can cause
hearing aids to malfunction Hearing
aids that are worn in the ear canal
naturally come in contact with earwax
and therefore usually require more frequent
cleaning. Hearing aids that are worn
in the ear canal naturally come in contact
with earwax and therefore usually require
more frequent cleaning. |
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| The Sound Outlet |
| If earwax has accumulated
around the sound outlet, remove it with
the cloth or the small brush supplied
with your hearing aid. If you let the
wax dry overnight first, it will be
easier to remove. |
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| The Vent |
| Some CIC instruments
are fitted with a special short vent
tube, whose opening can usually be seen
near to the sound outlet. The wax-removing
tool for a Widex CIC hearing aid has
a long and a short end. There is a tiny
ball at the tip of the longer end, which
is used for clearing this vent. Insert
the long end of the wax-removing tool
into the opening of the vent near the
tip of the aid (i.e. the end opposite
the battery drawer, as illustrated).
We recommend that you first open the
battery drawer and remove the battery.
Then turn the hearing aid so that the
open battery drawer is facing downwards,
to allow any earwax to be pushed out
through the hearing aid. If your CIC
hearing aid is equipped with a full-length
vent that goes all the way through the
shell of the hearing aid, pass the long
wax-removing tool available for this
type of vent completely through the
vent. Important: Do not insert anything
into the sound outlet. Most ITE instruments
have a full-length vent that goes all
the way through the shell of the hearing
aid. To clean the vent, use the long
wax-removing tool and pass it complete-
ly through the vent as shown in the
photo. |
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| The Microphone Opening
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| For CIC instruments
use the short end of the wax-removing
tool to remove any wax that has accumulated
around the microphone opening on the
battery drawer. Open the battery drawer
and remove the battery. Turn the hearing
aid so that the open battery drawer
is facing downwards. Guide the short
end of the wax-removing tool through
the microphone opening on the battery
drawer from the inside as illustrated.
This should be done every day after
wearing the hearing aid. Do not insert
anything into the microphone itself.
On some ITE instruments a grid covers
the microphone opening. In this case,
the small brush should be used for cleaning
around the microphone opening as shown
in the photo. If your ITE model does
not have a microphone grid, the wax-removing
tool should be used, as shown in the
photo. |
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| Wax Guard |
| A wax guard is
a special type of filter, which is placed
in the sound outlet and is usually designed
to be exchanged by the wearer. The filter
helps to prevent wax and dirt from entering
the sound channel. If your hearing aid
is provided with a wax guard it is important
to remove any wax or dirt that has accumulated
around it. Use the soft cloth or the
small brush for this purpose. As people
produce different amounts of earwax,
some hearing aid users will have to
change the wax guard quite often, while
others perhaps only every other week.
Whether your hearing aid is equipped
with a wax guard or not, you should
never insert anything into the sound
outlet. Even with careful cleaning,
wax and dirt can become lodged in the
hearing aid and cause it to malfunction.
Often this takes the form of the aid
sounding weak, distorted or dead. If
this happens, return the hearing aid
to your dispensing centre for service.
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