I didn’t say you can’t use a CIC with severe loss, I just said it’s generally not the most appropriate device and not the conventional recommendation for this severity of loss.
If you asked 10 Audi’s what the best style of hearing aid is for severe hearing loss, most would RITE or BTE.
With cics what you gain in discretion you compromise on technical performance, reliability and connectivity.
Also virto b titanium is the older model, you have vitro m titanium.
Hello,
I’m in a similar situation, moderate hearing loss in left ear, right ear still good hearing. I recently first tried out the Oticon OPN1 IIC’s - didn’t like them at all, so I exchanged them for the Phonak Virto M90-10 IIC’s, but in both ears and with acrylic shells. My audi wanted to be able to shape them if need be. I’ve had them 3 weeks now and really like them. They are helping me in crowded situations. They’re programmed to be able to allow me increase volume by hitting the button(s), and they’re programmed to allow me force them into a “crowd mode”, which reduces background sounds around me and instead focuses on people’s voices near me. This has been working out great! I’m still in trial phase, but am very pleased with them.
@sunpadre that’s really good to hear, would you mind posting a picture of your hearing aids so that I can see which model you have please? I’m new to this and I’m getting confused with the different models! Thanks so much 
With respect, @bigaltavista I didn’t ask you if you can use a CIC with a severe hearing loss, I asked you if you agreed or disagreed with Phonak’s marketing of the aid as one that is suitable for ‘mild to severe’ loss?
Not quite,they are a bit different, Marvel sword chip/processor are different from the older Palio 3 chip in Belong, But… Regardless didn’t the OP also say he has the size 10 battery
So no wireless? That’s a let down.
I did mention right at the beginning of this post, that a pair of RIC is the way to go, there’s a few posts on this very topic ( one in particular that went into great detail @Blacky ) that is even if you don’t need 2 , it’s still better for some to have this set up, the hearing aids work together, as in binaural, you get all the benefits of the technology been offered.
Totally agree with this, Marvel (RIC,BTE) platform are pretty good HAs, you only need to read the posts from here to see that the sun actually shines off them!
We’ll I’ll take some flank and disagree with it, the severe part, they are most certainly suitable for mild to moderate. Just because your loss fits within Phonaks limit doesn’t mean this is the perfect model/type for you.
Are you willing to give RIC a go, ask your audiologist for a trial, if they don’t work out, you can always try other brands and models, I wouldn’t buy anything that “doesn’t work” for myself.
You have been given a lot good information from a few members, re-read everything and approach your audiologist, you’ll be armed with a lot more information then when you first walked in the door.
Remember “knowledge is power”
I didn’t dispute their claim either.
It is possible to achieve the amount of amplification required for a severe hearing loss with a virto m titanium, and thus yes they are technically capable of being a hearing instrument for severe losses.
Like all manufacturers Phonak realises that there are patients like you who prioritize discretion, and have made it possible to configure a virto m titanium product with a SP receiver, however if you look at Phonaks “severe to profound” hearing loss category, it’s most decorated devices have always been their Naida BTE hearing aids.
No sorry, you’re wrong as well.
The SWORD chip is not used in their Virto M Titanium device (or Virto M 10 NW O) only the Virto M 312 uses the Sword chip
In fact the processor used in all of their non wireless 10 devices is actually a different chip when compared to other products on the same platform, even in the custom Virto product group. This has been the case since the Belong platform.
Thank you again and also @bigaltavista & @Zebras - my first post mentioned that this is my first hearing aid and I’m slowly realising how little I actually know. I’m even struggling to identify the HA I’m wearing correctly!
I have a follow up appointment on Tuesday and so I can go with some questions to ask, I appreciate all of your comments and suggestions and I am beginning to wonder if, in simple terms, my current HA is powerful enough in noisy environments to help me. As an example I went to the pub last night to watch the England game and really struggled to hear friends sitting on my table with the noise in the bar and from the television.
My thoughts now are whether I need to consider a BTE aid or maybe something like the Virto Marvel M-312, slightly bigger/visible than what I have at present but I believe is more powerful and has two microphones?
As you say, knowledge is power…
Good thinking and good luck.
Looking at that test, there’s a couple(lots) of pieces of information missing.
Did the machine run the test or was the audiologist pressing the buttons?
Did they put on a second headband to get Bone conducted levels?
When they were testing the left ear in particular was there another sound (while noise) played to your right ear?
Without the confirmation provided above, it’s entirely possible that the figures measured are entirely spurious and your left ear has a completely different hearing loss.
Thanks for clarifying that.
Those were the questions I was going to ask, along with: What caused that hearing loss and how long has it gone unaided?
Quite.
That Audiogram gives more questions than answers.
What I am particularly suspicious of is that despite the degree of asymmetry, the shape of the loss on both sides is virtually the same. That screams ‘test error in terms of masking’ at me, especially in terms of the circa 60dB transcranial difference. Added to the lack of masked BC on there.
I’m happy to be wrong on this, but it would explain why the hearing aid is totally inappropriate.
Hi. As per my original post, I’ve been suffering with hearing in my left ear for 6-7 years.
In terms of the cause, I picked up an ear infection and although the pain and discomfort passed after 3-4 days my hearing has never been the same, and seems to have gradually deteriorated.
I do have my suspicions that at the same time I’d recently started using an e-cigarette, and from doing a little research on the internet there does seem to be a few people linking the ingredients in e-cigarettes to tinnitus & hearing problems, but I’ve mentioned this to my doctor and a couple of consultants I’ve seen and none of them seemed to take this seriously, one even laughed at me!
Hi. Custom hearing aids can be fitted for severe/profound hearing loss but is not the optimum choice, RITE or BTE is. If you want custom HA you have to go with one that has a UP receiver. Not all HA manufacturers have UP receiver in custom HA. Also a half shell or full shell is choice for custom HA for severe/profound hearing loss. I wear Resound half shell with UP receiver for my severe/profound hearing loss. The challenge with a high power custom HA is feedback especially in the high frequencies. I was fortunate that I was able to get power in the high frequencies without feedback with a pressure vent. My fit was a deep canal fit which helped control feedback. I prefer a custom HA over BTE because the custom HA sounded more natural since microphones are in your ear. My original choice was Starkey but did not have direct streaming of iPhone at the time for custom HA so I went with Resound which had the direct streaming. Try a couple manufacturers custom HA and see which one will meet your needs
Thanks, really interesting. I think I’m experiencing feedback in the high frequencies too, but my biggest frustration is that it’s offering nothing in noisy environments at all, I might as well not be wearing it. I was thinking that a BTE might be the way to go for me, but then I read your comment about custom HA producing a more natural sound, made me think again!
I’m seeing my audiologist again tomorrow so I’ll ask him his opinion - appreciate you taking the time to reply.
