sensory hearing loss and the coclier

Posted by rlsutton @rlsutton, Mar 7 10:31am

I’m about 6 months into one sides sensory hearing loss. If I can function ok as I am is there anything to be gained from the coclier implant

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It would partly depend on if you are using a hearing aid in the ear with hearing loss and if you find it is benefiting you. You will need to have tried one before you qualify for a cochlear implant. Hearing is not only about volume but also about clarity. I'm sorry if this is telling you what you already know but you didn't give a lot of info 🙂 If you qualify and insurance will pay I would go for it for the following reasons in no particular order:
1. With only one sided hearing you are not able to tell the direction that sound is coming from.
2. If you lose your hearing in the other ear you will then be somewhere between completely deaf and hard of hearing and if that happens to you as an adult it is not fun. At that point you will be scrambling to find the best options. I don't know the cause of your hearing loss, but I lost first in one ear and later in the other. The cause of mine is Meniere's disease and while hearing fluctuates quite considerably in my 'good' ear still, the other was severely to profoundly deaf.
3. Rehabilitation is easier the quicker after hearing loss that you are implanted and it is nice to be able to hear between implantation and activation.
4. Almost every one who has a cochlear implant is happy they had it done. The number I read was 96% satisfaction.
I hope this gives you something to think about.

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Be sure to check out the other options that are available aside from cochlear implants. Many patients can opt to get bone conduction hearing devices to address sudden sensorineural hearing loss. This involves an implant and a sound processor. The "hearing" sounds just like your natural hearing. It doesn't having to adjust to the new way of hearing that cochlear implants often require. Check out the Osia 2 from Cochlear for more information. (The Med-El Bonebridge is another brand/product that uses the same technology).

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I really wasn’t given much to go on even by the Duke ENT , that was the second one I saw. I did like him much better than the first one I saw in Greenville NC

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You know when I start asking questions on a site like this I’m not getting good information from the doctors

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If you still have good hearing in your good ear, you may want to check into a cros hearing aid in the deaf ear. If that does not work, try for a bone conduction hearing implant. I have the Osia 2 (deaf in one ear and diminished hearing in the good ear). If you have extremely diminished hearing in the good ear, I would push for the Cochlear implant in the bad ear. You do have options, and be sure you have a good ENT who is very familiar with all of those options and their success or failure.

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