"The hearing aid was only as good as the fitting and subsequent adustments, which had to be made by a skilled person with an inordinate sense of patience. Joel Lipin, Eugene Lipin and Bert Lies have unique qualities required to make a hearing aid an integral part of your lifestyle..."
Hearing aids come in a number of different styles (Picture from L to R). The most common style today is the Completely In the Canal or CIC.
 The CIC is the smallest of today's hearing aids, with the entire hearing aid fitting within the ear canal. While CIC hearing aids are not for every hearing loss, they have the advantage of maintaining your natural directional ability. CIC hearing aids also will typically interface with telephones without feedback and have reduced sensitivity to wind noise.
 Next is the In The Canal hearing aid or ITC. While not as small as the CIC, the Canal hearing aid offers those who may not be a candidate for the CIC another option for a smaller size hearing aid.
 Another popular model is the Full Shell in the ear hearing aid or ITE. Due to the larger size of the ITE, this hearing aid may offer you access to additional features and options such as Directional Microphones or multiple memories not available on most smaller hearing aids.
 Finally, the Behind the Ear style or BTE hearing aids are often stronger than the ITE. Contrary to popular belief, they are not necessarily an "older" style. In fact, BTE hearing aids can have the same advanced technology that will be found in other style hearing aids with the added benefit of greater reliability and ease of maintenance.
Disposable Hearing Aids Explained 
Disposable hearing aids, like the Songbird Hearing System, represent an exciting new method of correcting mild to moderate hearing losses. As with any new system, it helps to have some understanding of how these new types of hearing aids are fitted. (See our Consumer's Guide to Disposable versus Durable Hearing Aids). Unlike most conventional hearing aids that are custom fitted to your ears and hearing needs, the disposable hearing aids use a generic size shell about the size of a dime and the level of amplification and frequency response is preset by the manufacturer. Disposable hearing aids do not have a volume control, so you don't need to be concerned with setting the volume level. There are a number of different amplification and frequency response combinations. Your specialist, with the use of a special selection system, will usually recommend a narrow range of settings for you to select from. Disposable hearing aids are expected to last about 40 days. We recommend that you purchase an additional set as a spare. As with all hearing aid fittings, we will test your hearing level to determine the appropriate hearing aid setting for your needs. Ask your specialist to demonstrate to you the benefits of the disposable hearing aid system. However, you should be aware, as with all hearing aids, not everyone is a candidate for the disposable hearing aid system.
A consumer's Guide to Disposable versus Durable Hearing Aids.
As part of the increasing options available to people who have hearing impairment, we now offer "disposable" hearing aids. Like glasses and contact lenses, these aids are an option for some people. Traditional hearing aids, which can be called "durable" have different benefits. While the goal of both disposable and durable hearing aids is to improve hearing and communication abilities, durable and disposable aids do differ in some substantial ways. This short guide is intended to provide you with the information you need to make an intelligent choice based upon understanding of the benefits and limitations of both disposable and durable hearing aids.
1. Basic Facts
Hearing aids are designed to make speech intelligible in most listening situations for people who have a hearing loss. Hearing aids may also improve hearing in some situations (e.g. music, etc.).
ALL ears and most hearing losses differ.
ALL hearing aids need to be fitted for the specific individual.
There are different acoustic prescriptions for different hearing losses. There is NOT one hearing aid for all hearing problems.
ALL hearing aids REQUIRE adaptation (acclimatization). It take time to "get used to" hearing through hearing aids.
Hearing aids will not completely solve your hearing problems in ALL listening situations, nor will they completely restore your hearing to the same levels as when you had "perfect hearing."
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