Sudden sensorineural hearing loss in my right ear some time ago (>1 year)
Seen by ENT but not treated with steroids because it was too late. Trialled an Oticon Real a year ago but gave up (probably too quickly). I was aware that my hearing was becoming worse so had a repeat audiogram which is much worse than the one a year previously. I am regretful that I did not persevere with my original trial.
In Portugal, it would seem that finding an independent audiologist is impossible. All hearing aids seem to be dispensed via large multinationals. I am currently using Minisom, which is part of the Italian company Amplifon. They offer Amplifon branded (and therefore software locked) versions of GNResound, Phonak and Oticon aids.
At present I am trialling a single RHS Oticon Intent 1. I have seen two audiologists here. Both have recommended that I only use one hearing aid in my right ear. The Intent is working well enough for me but I would love to try the Phonak Sphere. Unfortunately Amplifon do not offer this yet but may do so later this year. The price for this single Oticon is around 2500€. My audiologist has access to REM (Aurical - it’s sitting on her desk, but she hasn’t used it on me yet).
I do however have another option. I can drive to Vigo, which is two hour’s drive away across the border in Galicia, Spain. They seem to have a chain of local Audiology Clinics https://www.audias.es which seem to get good reviews. Of course I could also fly to London and visit the Harley Street Hearing Group https://harleysthearing.co.uk/
Any advice, help or tips would be more than welcome. What would you do in my shoes?
Hi, DougL, welcome to the forum!
I am by no means an expert of any sort, being fairly new to wearing hearing aids myself. However, I’m sure that there will be many, including registered providers, who will be glad to share their knowledge with you and give good advice.
Are you able to input your recent audiogram? It will be helpful to be able to see what your hearing is like in both ears.
Depending upon how severe your hearing loss is on the right, a CROS hearing aid to transfer sounds, coming from your right, to a hearing aid in your left ear might be recommended. This is one reason why professionals on the forum will find your audiogram useful. To input it, click on your avatar and look for a “my audiogram” button, click on that, and input the number values from your audiogram. I believe the button upon completion of input is “save and close” (or similar).
If I were you, I’d go somewhere that the software is not locked, even if that meant flying to London.
Someone in this forum said that the best deals close to Spain are in France. I don’t remember who said that but he did say that the price difference between Spain and France is very significant. If you do a search in this forum, you may find the info.
I don’t know how far the French Basque country is for you (probably 8hrs if you are in Porto, I’m assuming this if you are 2 hrs from Vigo). But Bilbao is on the way and, it is a great place to visit.
Espero que esta informação seja útil - BTW, you guys have the best bacalhau in the world
My left ear has mild loss at the very upper frequencies. My right ear is pretty much flatlined at 80 dB loss in the lower and 100 dB loss at the upper. So profound. However, with the Intent I can decipher speech if I completely occlude my left ear. I am driving up to Vigo tomorrow and I will see if I can make an appointment.
Part of the difficulty is that I just can’t pick up the phone and call Spain. I am hoping they will understand Portuguese which I can just about speak.
Starting out with a professional who’s experienced and skilled at hearing aid programming is valuable, even for those who intend to eventually go DIY. Still thinking about London at all?
No, not at the moment. I am not exactly funds restricted but I am generally pretty frugal. I will see how I get on with my Porto audiologist and then continue from there. She seems lovely, but as I am an ex medical professional and teacher, I am used to the smoke-and-mirrors effect.
