Earmolds are all around us. We see them every day, whether we recognize them or not. Newscasters, reporters, talk show hosts, film and broadcast crews, race car drivers and their pit crews, pilots, law enforcement agents, construction workers, hunters, and farmers, for example, all use various types of earmolds.
Some people need earmolds to protect their hearing, while others use them to channel and amplify sound. The most familiar use of an earmold is for a hearing aid. In this article, we’ll discuss the most common types of earmolds, what their applications are, and how to best maintain them.
What’s an earmold?
An earmold is a custom-made in-the-ear device with a specific function depending on the wearer’s needs. The most common uses are for either amplifying sound or protecting against it. The device itself generally doesn’t have a power source or controls installed—it looks like a small plug that fits exactly into the wearer’s ear canal.
Why do earmolds have different shapes and sizes?
The size and shape of an earmold vary depending on several factors: the anatomy of the wearer’s ear canal, the function of the earmold, and how tightly the earmold needs to seal the wearer’s ear canal. Every person has a uniquely shaped ear, and thus the shape of the customized earmold will need to match the user’s ear so it fits into the ear canal comfortably and securely.
Regarding function and size, protective devices that reduce sound tend to be larger and fill most of the lower external ear, which is comprised of the anterior portion of the external auditory meatus, the entire concha region, and most of the cymba region. There usually isn’t much variation from this design because the goal of a protective earmold is to create a tight acoustic seal to protect the wearer from damaging levels of noise.
Earmolds designed to channel sound from a hearing aid, however, have a much greater variety of sizes and form factors because they don’t always require a complete acoustic seal of the ear. These earmolds can just fill the anterior portion of the external auditory meatus, for example, leaving the rest of the ear open.
A general rule for hearing aid earmolds is that their size will depend on the power level of the hearing aid it’s attached to. As the power levels of hearing aids increase, so will the size of the earmolds.
What’s an earmold made of?
The materials used to build an earmold are confined to soft types (silicone and vinyl) and hard types (Lucite and other acrylics). Some earmold manufacturers have a proprietary blend of several of these materials.
Softer materials are employed when the earmold is used to protect hearing or when the wearer is bothered by hard materials in their ear. Harder materials are used for durability and dexterity concerns. Soft, easily damaged external ear tissue of the wearer and allergies to silicone are other reasons soft earmolds may not be considered.
How does an earmold work?
As mentioned earlier, earmolds have various styles and purposes, depending on the user’s needs. When an earmold is intended to protect the user’s hearing, the mold will seal the ear canal and prevent harmful levels of noise from causing damage.
Earmolds that amplify sound will seal the wearer’s ear canal and channel sound from a hearing aid or other amplified device directly into the ear. The use of custom earmolds is indicated when a user needs to hear a signal in their ear without outside noise interfering. Pilots, law enforcement, musicians, broadcasters, and hearing aid wearers all use various types of these earmolds.
Infection control of earmolds
Developing an infection resulting from exposure to contaminants is a danger to every person who uses an earmold. Contact transmission is the most frequent means of disease transmission and may occur directly or indirectly.
Avoiding disease transmission is vital to successfully using an earmold. Preventing contaminants from growing on the surface of an earmold requires more than simply cleaning the surface. Earmolds must be cleaned and disinfected daily to prevent infections.
Cleaning earmolds
Cleaning an earmold involves simply removing contamination from the device’s surface area. No germs are removed during the cleaning process. Dry tissues or paper towels, cleaning brushes, and wire loops are all common materials and tools used to clean earmolds.
Disinfecting earmolds
All contamination and germs are removed when disinfecting an earmold. The materials used for disinfecting usually consist of moist, non-alcohol-based disinfectant wipes or sprays.
Sterilizing earmolds
Sterilizing is only needed when the earmold has been exposed to contaminated bodily fluids, such as blood or mucus. Wearers should bring an earmold in that condition to their audiologist or hearing aid specialist, who will detach it from the sound device and submerge it in a bath of germicide solution for an extended period.
Storing and caring for earmolds
Don’t
- Place an earmold on or in surfaces where germs can live (e.g., countertops, desks, purses, pockets, etc.)
- Store an earmold in a container that can’t be washed with soap and water (e.g., jewelry box, cardboard box, paper envelope, etc.)
- Allow people to handle an earmold if they don’t understand how to disinfect it after touching it
Do
- Store earmolds in washable containers; modern earmolds typically come with a storage container
- Clean and disinfect earmolds daily, or at least when they’re worn
Hopefully, you’re now a bit more familiar with earmolds and their basic maintenance. TruHearing® is here to help you with all your hearing health needs.
