Methods and Materials

We retrospectively studied self-selected patients in a private practice with mild to moderately severe hearing loss who were interested in wearing a new continuous-wear hearing aid.  Each of these patients underwent an Otolaryngology evaluation including a history, a physical examination, and a comprehensive audiometric evaluation with counseling by both the audiologist and the physician. Patients with extremely narrow or short ear canals, prominent osteomas, prior local radio-therapy or habitual swimmers were initially excluded from the study. After detailed counseling 392 qualified patients electively chose to purchase a Lyric hearing aid with a trial period. The lyric devices were placed in each ear canal and 28 patients were disqualified from wearing a Lyric when they experienced moderate initial discomfort or pain.  Three-hundred and sixty-four patients who were initially comfortable with the device were included in the study.  These patients were seen regularly and examined for ear canal inflammation and the ability to safely tolerate the device for extended time periods without complication.

We also inquired from a subset of the 364 patients who used conventional hearing aids prior to a Lyric:  1. if they preferred a Lyric to their previous hearing aid 2. The level of satisfaction using a Lyric with the telephone compared to their prior hearing aid and 3. The extent of patient satisfaction with the cosmetic appearance of a Lyric compared with their prior conventional hearing aid. Patients responded by rating their experience on a scale of 1-5 with 1 representing inferior to their prior conventional aid, 3 representing comparable to their prior conventional aid and 5 representing superior to their conventional aid.

Are you a candidate?

The Lyric™

Lyric™ is the world’s first and only 100% invisible extended wear hearing device. The device is comfortably placed in the ear canal and can be used 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for months at a time.* No surgery or anesthesia is required. Unlike many other hearing devices, Lyric is positioned deep inside the ear canal, so it uses your ear’s anatomy to provide exceptional sound quality in both quiet and noisy environments. Lyric lets you hear better and live life to the fullest!

Once placed, Lyric is 100% invisible, allowing you to enjoy all the benefits of better hearing without anyone knowing you’re using a hearing device. There are no batteries to replace and no repairs to make. Just visit your ENT/audiologist office as needed to receive new devices with the latest Lyric technology.

Lyric is programmed for your specific hearing needs. You can adjust the settings and volume on your device as needed, as well as turn the device on and off.

Lyric was developed by InSound™ Medical, Inc. The company was founded by ENT physicians, hearing specialists, and engineers from the University of California, San Francisco and Silicon Valley. For more information and to watch a video on how Lyric works, please visit www.lyrichearing.com.

*Lyric can be worn for up to 120 days at a time. Individual replacement needs may vary.

Dr. Scherl posted the following comment on the New York Times Blog pertaining to an article regarding the Lyric:
 
April 17th, 2008

Hearing aids will never be a perfect substitute for normal hearing! But, in 2008, not needing to remove, touch or manipulate a hearing aid is as close as you can get to having your natural hearing back.

A current standard aid requires the user to re-adapt to their device every morning when they put it in, but with the Lyric the patient acclimates to the aid only once, within the first day it is placed. The Lyric is also a better hearing device because the Lyric allows for sound to be funneled more naturally down the ear canal. The Lyric delivers sound just 3 mm away from the ear drum, unlike standard aids which are more than 1 cm from the tympanic membrane. It just makes better acoustic sense to deliver the sound as close as possible to the ear drum, which is the microphone of the brain.

This really is a new and very different technology. In our practice our patients are uniformly thrilled to be rid of their old aids. It is a minor inconvenience to visit your MD every 3 months but battery length will improve in the years to come. Yes, the cost is high, but the subscription includes at least 4 new devices per ear. Overall our patients have been extremely satisfied with the Lyric and the proof is in their returning every 3 months and renewing their subscriptions after the year is up.

This technology evolved from the innovative and creative genius of a hearing aid engineer and a leading ear doctor. Their vision was combined with a determined team of engineers, audiologists, technicians and financial managers who have worked for 7 years to make a dream come true. This is the nature of American innovation and profit is part of the incentive, but like any technology the cost will probably come down in the future.

Unfortunately many patients are “sold” hearing aids rather than advised by experienced teams of Audiologists and Doctors. Patients need to be educated regarding realistic expectations. Not every patient with significant hearing loss will derive great benefit from their hearing aid. Yet having a frank conversation with a patient and emphasizing what their realistic expectations should be is often at odds with the goal of the practitioner to sell hearing aids. The programming of an aid is truly an art and requires a skilled audiologist willing to listen and work closely with a patient over time. Most state laws allow for the return of the aid within the first month if the patient is not satisfied, so it is difficult to understand why most of the unhappy patients do not return their hearing aids.

-- Michael Scherl, M.D.