Explorer™ Offers Latest in Hearing Technology for Infants, Toddlers and Teens
Charlotte, NC, April 2, 2008 - Approximately 3 in 1,000 children under age 18 experience hearing loss, each with their own specific needs and preferences. To help cater to each child's unique circumstances, Siemens Hearing Instruments, a leading manufacturer of hearing instruments in the United States, today launched Explorer™ 500, the first dedicated pediatric instrument from Siemens, debuting at the American Academy of Audiology's 20th Annual AudiologyNOW! Conference, to be held from April 2 to 5, 2008, in Charlotte, N.C. (Booth #1825).
Designed exclusively for a child's lifestyle, Explorer offers the versatility and features kids need to stay connected to their world. Packed with the latest hearing technology, fully compatible with most FM systems, and easily upgradeable, it is an ideal hearing instrument for infants, toddlers and teens.
"Hearing is one of the key ways that children explore their environment and the world around them, so loss of this ability can be stressful for both the child and their caregivers," said Dr. Thomas Powers, Vice President of Audiology and Professional Relations at Siemens Hearing Instruments, Inc. "This latest technology is designed to help children get back to exploring their environment while, at the same time, addressing the needs of safety, sensitivity and style."
Explorer and Safety
Parents of infants and toddlers can be confident that their children will be safe when wearing the Explorer, which is equipped with a host of safety features, expert tested for the crib, school, and playground Explorer is nanocoated to repel dirt and grease, prevent cracks and scratches, and is resistant to breakage. Explorer also features a baby-proof battery door lock and a rugged push button that makes chewing off almost impossible. The Explorer's pediatric earhook was designed specifically for babies and younger kids, so it is easy to screw on, but difficult to screw off, so babies don't remove it from the instrument while parents can.
Kid-Friendly Features
The technology features, available on Explorer's Tek™ option, were developed specifically with teens in mind. The Tek™ wireless enhancement allows teens to stream audio from cell phones, MP3 players, TVs and other audio sources directly to their hearing instruments, with stereo sound.
Explorer is available in 16 kid-friendly colors so kids don't get bored with the same color. Additionally, a sticker book featuring numerous stick-ons that are shaped to fit the outside of the hearing instrument, allows kids to personalize their Explorers to look like a superhero, an animal, or a flower.
The instruments include SoundSmoothing®, the world's first transient noise suppression technology. In a recent study conducted at the National Acoustic Laboratories, the noise-reduction algorithm used in SoundSmoothing to reduce non-speech transient sounds was shown to offer benefits to the hearing aid wearer in terms of comfort, with no noticeable effect on localization or intelligibility.
Explorer also features an eight-channel compression system, expanded frequency range, direct audio input with speech activated FM, automatic situation detection, audibility focused Speech and Noise Management, automatic and multi-channel adaptive directional microphone system, FeedbackBlocker™, eWindscreen®, AutoPhone®, and DataLogging.
About Siemens Healthcare
Siemens Healthcare is one of the world's largest suppliers to the healthcare industry. The company is a renowned medical solutions provider with core competence and innovative strength in diagnostic and therapeutic technologies as well as in knowledge engineering, including information technology and system integration. With its laboratory diagnostics acquisitions, Siemens Healthcare is the first fully integrated diagnostics company, bringing together imaging and lab diagnostics, therapy, and healthcare information technology solutions, supplemented by consulting and support services. Siemens Healthcare delivers solutions across the entire continuum of care - from prevention and early detection, to diagnosis, therapy and care. The company employs more than 48,000 people worldwide and operates in 130 countries. In the fiscal year 2007 (Sept. 30), Siemens Healthcare reported sales of 9.85 billion, orders of 10.27 billion, and group profit of 1.32 billion. Further information can be found by visiting www.siemens.com/healthcare or the Siemens Web Channel on Audiology Online.
