Tina Lintner remembers her son being very loud as a toddler – but that’s not entirely uncommon for little boys. However, as Aden developed, it became clear there could be something more to his behavior – and at age 4, he was diagnosed with autism.

Aden would have yearly hearing screenings and once diagnosed with autism, no one gave much thought to his being loud. But, that all changed one day when he was in kindergarten.

A life-changing diagnosis

“During kindergarten Aden was running out of the classroom and his special education teacher and the teacher coming towards him tried to get him to stop,” recalls Tina. “As soon as the teacher in front of him said something to him, he turned his right ear – something he had never done – and the teachers immediately pointed it out to each other.”

In spite of his yearly hearing screenings, the Lintner’s thought this would be a good time to follow up with their pediatrician. They were referred to Amanda Hallas Huff, Doctor of Audiology, at Prevea. Aden was diagnosed with a severe hearing loss in his left ear and a moderate-to-severe hearing loss in his right ear.

“Amanda told me what was going on and she was nothing but extremely thorough and diligent,” said Tina.

A whole new world of sounds

The hearing aids that Amanda recommended for Aden were life-changing – from the very first moment she turned them on.

“When Amanda turned the hearing aids on, Aden jumped in her arms,” remembers Tina. “The moment we drove out of the clinic, we decided to stop at my in-laws’ house and as we drove across the bridge he kept asking what each noise was.”

Today, Aden is 9 years old and his quality of life continues to improve thanks to the care he received from pediatric experts at Prevea Audiology.

“Since we got the diagnosis and he has gotten hearing aids, his autism behaviors decreased and his schoolwork and ability to communicate with his peers dramatically increased,” said Tina.