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Allergic reaction with Phonak BTE

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I’m a new hearing aid wearer and I’m having an allergic reation to my Audeo S Smart V hearing aids. I’ve had them for a few days now and the hearing aid retention wire is causing my ears to break out and itch. I’m also noticing the rash under the part of the aid that sits on top of my ear. Has anyone ever heard of this? Any suggestions? I am allergic to latex and some eyeglass nose pads have caused the allergic reaction too.

This is the second pair of hearing aids on trying. The first was Widex Clear Fusion 220. The sound was great and I had no problems with allergies. I was comfortable with them but the Audiologist had a hard time fitting me with the correct size dome and ultimately she ordered a custom mold. I wore these aids for around 3 weeks. Hearing was great but I did have a very slight hum in my left ear that I heard when it was very quite. The Audiologist couldn’t seem to get rid of that noise she ordered the Phonak.

Any suggestions of what I should do? I know I can’t wear the Phonak’s since the rash gets worse the more I wear them.

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I believe the tubes as well as the retention wire are available in hypo allergenic plastics. As for the hearing aids have you wiped it down with the hearing aid wipes yet? The plastic has a mold release when it is made and it may not have been cleaned off and you could be allergic to it. As the Evil Scientist said " it could be a heat rash." You could order some Hearing Aid Sweat Bands and see if that helps, they are available online or your audi may have them. Good luck!

Hi Grandma
Unfortunately yours is not an uncommon occurrence. Quite often it’s not just the plastic some people are allergic to but the chemicals in the colouring in the plastic!
Get hold of a product called Ear Gene and put a thin smear on the affected part of you. It should create a barrier between the offending item and your skin. You could also try petroleum jelly/ Vaseline. Just be careful not to block any of the important bits of the hearing aid.
Hope that helps.

Thanks for all the advice. I live in Fredericksburg, so it has been a bit warm here lately. I have tried cleaning them well and the rash comes right back when I put them on. I have had bad reactions to some acrylic materials etc., for example, some eye glasses have caused a rash. It actually gets quite bad and lasts for days.

I had no bad reaction with the Widex, so I’m going to ask the Audiologist if we can try another pair of Widex Clear Fusion. I wore the Widex for about 3 weeks and the only real issue was the very slight hum in one ear. No itching or anything and the sound was very clear. Audiologist said I was probably hearing the processor noise. It’s only bad in the very quiet. Do you all think I’ll learn to live with noise? I hate to try a whole new brand.

Also how important is it get a Real Ear Test? I know I heard better withe Widex.

Thanks for the help.

I see that this was already mentioned above, but if the actual body of the hearing aid is also bothering your skin, I would suggest Ear Gear (or hearing aid sweat bands, although I have Ear Gear). They help protect the aids from moisture and dirt, but they also act as a barrier so the material of the aid is not actually touching your skin. I’ve found that they have been pretty helpful for me, since I also have Phonak Audeos. Plus they come in some cute colors!

Have the audiologist make a custom mold/ ear bud. This way there is no need for a retention wire.

Thanks for all the suggestions. I have an appointment with the Audiologist on Monday and we’ll see what she says. The thing that really bothers me is I had no allergic reaction to the Widex hearing aids.

@carnutfl said:

Phonak also makes a ceramic case for their aids. I have one and it works well. No extra charge for the ceramic.

Er…the ceramic can be quite a bit more expensive actually depending on the dispenser and if they are able to negotiate a deal or not…BUT the chances of having an allergic reaction is much less likely.

You might want to consider putting clear nail-polish on the HA where it makes contact with your skin, see if that helps or not. The ear gear is a good idea too…there are basically rubber wraps that go around the HA which helps protect it from moisture as well…

To solve this without changing aids, just have your Audi put tubes around your retention wire, and then purchase a pair of ear gear. This way the aid is not touching your ear and can’t cause a reaction :slight_smile:

ETA: Ear Gear are the colored covers on my aids in my siggy. They have black, brown and beige as well if you want it to blend. The purple mold in my siggy can be made with hypoallergenic material (although it will be clear, not colored). The tubes as well are made hypoallergenic.

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