News
Lecture focuses on help beyond hearing aids
By Ellen Sussman, Special to the Green Valley News
Vast improvements in technology have helped thousands who are hard of hearing. But for some, even the most advanced hearing aid isn’t enough.
At Monday’s Adult Loss of Hearing Association monthly meeting, Territory Outreach Specialist Heidi Lervik and Clinical Applications Specialist Beth Gautereaux delivered a lecture titled “When hearing aids are not enough” and spoke about two implantable options beyond hearing aids.
Lervik spoke about Baha implantable solutions; Gautereaux spoke about cochlear implants.
Baha solutions
Lervik said one benefit of the Baha solution is that a person with severe loss of hearing can be tested before surgical implant to see if it will work.
Baha is the only bone-anchored hearing system. It utilizes the body’s natural ability to conduct sound via bone. According to Cochlear Americas literature, it says, “In cases where the middle ear is blocked or damaged, Baha bypasses the obstacles and stimulates hearing via bone conduction.”
Lervik explained that every Baha system has a high-performance sound processor and a titanium implant, which is located beyond the ear. The implant benefits from a process called osseointegration, where titanium merges with human bone.
“There are three different processors depending on the hearing loss. An iPod or T-coil can connect easily,” she said.
Cochlear implants
Educating the audience about cochlear implants, Gautereaux said, “This choice is for those with cochlear/inner ear problems or where the cochlear is not functioning properly. The implant bypasses the broken part of the ear ... we’re trying to mimic what a cochlear does.”
She showed a PowerPoint slide of an entire wall of equipment that resembled the dials and gauges in a cockpit, and said the equipment shown in that 1967 photograph has been condensed to fit in one tiny microprocessor.
Gautereaux said a person can have cochlear implants in both ears and there are no age limitations. The ability to undergo implant surgery is based on overall general health.
Cochlear implants are a proven medical option for individuals who have severe to profound nerve deafness and receive little or no useful benefit from hearing aids.
Cochlear Americas literature says, “Electrical stimulation produces sound that is very different from hearing with hearing aids. Hearing aids amplify sound; they provide power but not always clarity to a severe-to-profoundly-deaf ear. Cochlear implants bypass damaged hair cells and stimulate the hearing nerve directly. They are designed to provide a clear auditory signal to the brain.”
Gautereaux emphasized the water- and sweat-resistant reliability of the equipment and of the internal device that’s designed to last a lifetime. Special bells and whistles can be programmed into a cochlear implant, depending on one’s lifestyle.
A special guest, Carole Merly — who has two cochlear implants — showed real proof of their fine technology.
Born hard-of-hearing, she said her hearing was gone at age 18. For 10 years, she refused to wear a hearing aid. Then, from age 28 to 52, she wore two hearing aids.
“They gave me sound and that was good,” she said. Then, heard she was a candidate for a cochlear implant.
“I got the first implant in January 2007 and the second one in February 2008. I could understand the voice at a supermarket self-scanner. Now I can hear voices. My hearing is almost normal,” she said.
For further information, visit www.cochlear.com.
Lervik may be reached at 602-312-3068 or hlervik@cochlear.com; Gautereaux at 877-279-5399 or bgautereaux@cochlear.com.
Ellen Sussman is a freelance writer in Green Valley. Contact her at ellen2414@cox.net.
At Monday’s Adult Loss of Hearing Association monthly meeting, Territory Outreach Specialist Heidi Lervik and Clinical Applications Specialist Beth Gautereaux delivered a lecture titled “When hearing aids are not enough” and spoke about two implantable options beyond hearing aids.
Lervik spoke about Baha implantable solutions; Gautereaux spoke about cochlear implants.
Baha solutions
Lervik said one benefit of the Baha solution is that a person with severe loss of hearing can be tested before surgical implant to see if it will work.
Baha is the only bone-anchored hearing system. It utilizes the body’s natural ability to conduct sound via bone. According to Cochlear Americas literature, it says, “In cases where the middle ear is blocked or damaged, Baha bypasses the obstacles and stimulates hearing via bone conduction.”
Lervik explained that every Baha system has a high-performance sound processor and a titanium implant, which is located beyond the ear. The implant benefits from a process called osseointegration, where titanium merges with human bone.
“There are three different processors depending on the hearing loss. An iPod or T-coil can connect easily,” she said.
Cochlear implants
Educating the audience about cochlear implants, Gautereaux said, “This choice is for those with cochlear/inner ear problems or where the cochlear is not functioning properly. The implant bypasses the broken part of the ear ... we’re trying to mimic what a cochlear does.”
She showed a PowerPoint slide of an entire wall of equipment that resembled the dials and gauges in a cockpit, and said the equipment shown in that 1967 photograph has been condensed to fit in one tiny microprocessor.
Gautereaux said a person can have cochlear implants in both ears and there are no age limitations. The ability to undergo implant surgery is based on overall general health.
Cochlear implants are a proven medical option for individuals who have severe to profound nerve deafness and receive little or no useful benefit from hearing aids.
Cochlear Americas literature says, “Electrical stimulation produces sound that is very different from hearing with hearing aids. Hearing aids amplify sound; they provide power but not always clarity to a severe-to-profoundly-deaf ear. Cochlear implants bypass damaged hair cells and stimulate the hearing nerve directly. They are designed to provide a clear auditory signal to the brain.”
Gautereaux emphasized the water- and sweat-resistant reliability of the equipment and of the internal device that’s designed to last a lifetime. Special bells and whistles can be programmed into a cochlear implant, depending on one’s lifestyle.
A special guest, Carole Merly — who has two cochlear implants — showed real proof of their fine technology.
Born hard-of-hearing, she said her hearing was gone at age 18. For 10 years, she refused to wear a hearing aid. Then, from age 28 to 52, she wore two hearing aids.
“They gave me sound and that was good,” she said. Then, heard she was a candidate for a cochlear implant.
“I got the first implant in January 2007 and the second one in February 2008. I could understand the voice at a supermarket self-scanner. Now I can hear voices. My hearing is almost normal,” she said.
For further information, visit www.cochlear.com.
Lervik may be reached at 602-312-3068 or hlervik@cochlear.com; Gautereaux at 877-279-5399 or bgautereaux@cochlear.com.
Ellen Sussman is a freelance writer in Green Valley. Contact her at ellen2414@cox.net.
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