What Is Hearing Aid Feedback?

Once a common occurrence for hearing aid wearers, feedback is now rarely discussed because it has largely been eliminated by technology. Learn more about what feedback is and how hearing aid manufacturers like Oticon™ have worked to reduce and even eliminate this age‑old problem. 

Hearing aid feedback is the high‑pitched whistle or squeal that comes from the hearing aid in certain situations. It happens when the sound from the hearing aid that is meant for your eardrum is also picked up by the hearing aid’s microphone, causing a loop. Basically, the hearing aid hears its own sounds. It is similar to what happens when too many people on the same video call are in one room with all their microphones on!

Hearing aid feedback is most likely to occur when you cup your hands over your ears or when you hug someone else wearing hearing aids and your ears are close together. However, with newer hearing aids, this is much less common thanks to advanced feedback-reduction technology.

If you’re experiencing hearing aid feedback, be sure to discuss it with your hearing care provider at your next appointment. There are programming adjustments they may be able to make. Here are some things you can try until you meet with your provider: 

1. Make sure your hearing aids are inserted correctly. If your behind-the-ear hearing aid dome isn’t fully in your ear canal, or if your in-the-canal hearing aid doesn’t have a proper seal, sound can “leak” out and be picked up by the outer microphone. If you’re experiencing feedback, give your hearing aids a quick push to make sure they’re seated all the way in your ear where they should be. 
2. Check for earwax. Earwax can cause the sound from your hearing aid to move unexpectedly, so be sure your ears are clean and see your provider for wax removal if necessary. 
3. Give your hearing aids a thorough cleaning. If it’s been a while since you cleaned your hearing aids and replaced the wax traps and domes, try refreshing everything and see if things sound better. If you’re a HearingLife customer, stop by during our daily walk-in hours for a free cleaning. 

If your hearing aids are more than 3 years old, ask your hearing care provider if it’s time to replace your hearing aids with new ones. Especially for those with mild to moderate hearing loss, newer devices offer exceptional feedback-reduction capabilities. 

If you’d like to see what the latest technology has to offer, schedule a free hearing aid demonstration at your local HearingLife. We would love to show you how far hearing technology has come.