Christa Lesté-LasserreAs an undergraduate in Mumbai, India, Saad Bhamla wanted to do something nice for his maternal grandparents: Buy them a pair of hearing aids.
But the prices were shockingly high—and far beyond his means. Now, 15 years later, the bioengineer has invented a device to help grandparents across the globe: a do-it-yourself hearing aid made from inexpensive, easy-to-find parts.
The no-frills device, described in a new study, could help restore hearing to millions suffering from age-related hearing loss—for less than the price of a bottle of water.The new device is “incredibly compelling,” says Frank Lin, an ear, nose, and throat doctor at the Cochlear Center for Hearing and Public Health at Johns Hopkins University who was.