DISPENSER INFORMATION & CHILDREN WITH HEARING LOSS
Warning to Hearing Aid Dispensers
A hearing aid dispenser should advise a prospective hearing aid user to consult promptly
with a licensed physician (preferably an ear specialist) before dispensing a hearing aid if
the hearing aid dispenser determines through inquiry, actual observation, or review of any
other available information concerning the prospective user, that the prospective user has
any of the following conditions:
(i) Visible congenital or traumatic deformity of the ear.
(ii) History of active drainage from the ear within the previous 90 days.
(iii) History of sudden or rapidly progressive hearing loss within the previous 90 days.
(iv) Acute or chronic dizziness.
(v) Unilateral hearing loss of sudden or recent onset within the previous 90 days.
(vi) Audiometric air-bone gap equal to or greater than 15 decibels at 500 hertz (Hz),
1,000 Hz, and 2,000 Hz.
(vii)
Visible evidence of signicant cerumen accumulation or a foreign body in th
e ear canal.
(viii) Pain or discomfort in the ear.
Special care should be exercised in selecting and ing a hearing aid whose maximum sound
pressure level exceeds 132 decibels because there may be risk of impairing the remaining
hearing of the hearing aid user. (is provision is required only for those hearing aids with a
maximum sound pressure capability greater than 132 decibels (dB).)
Children with Hearing Loss
In addition to seeing a physician for a medical evaluation, a child with a hearing loss
should be directed to an audiologist for evaluation and rehabilitation since hearing loss
may cause problems in language development and the educational and social growth of a
child. An audiologist is qualied by training and experience to assist in the evaluation and
rehabilitation of a child with a hearing loss.
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