Behind-the-Ear (BTE)Hearing Aids

Back of the head of a brunette wearing a behind the ear BTE hearing aid. The hearing aid casing matches her brown hair

Behind the ear hearing aid

Behind the ear (BTE) hearing aids are one of the most common styles of hearing technology fitted today. These are hearing devices with the main body of the device behind the ear but affixed to ear canal with an earmould or dome or eartip.

Types of behind-the-ear hearing aids.

The traditional style

There are two types of BTE hearing aids. The first type, which is the traditional style, has its receiver located inside the main body of the hearing aid. The traditional BTE aid typically has an earmould and tubing. The open style derivative has a thinner tubing with a dome on the end.

The receiver in the canal style

The second style has the receiver housed at the end of a wire, usually situated within a dome or earmould inside the ear canal. The second style is often called the receiver in the canal (RIC) hearing aid or the receiver in the ear (RIE) hearing aid. The BTE is currently one of the styles with the highest level of amplification, but its receiver size and power can be modified to be lower or higher to suit the requirements of the hearing loss.

Similarities and differences between both styles of hearing aids

The open style BTE looks similar to the RIC hearing aid, as both have similar-sized tubing. The primary difference between the two is that the open-style BTE has a tube, with a hole that can be cleared out end to end with a line the size of a fishing line. One end of the open tube has a screw top to be affixed to the hearing aid, and the other end of the tubing has the dome or custom earmould. Whereas a receiver-in-the-canal aid has a wire and not a tube. One end has the connecting electric pin for connecting to the hearing aid, and the other end has the receiver, which is encased within an earmould or dome.