Hearing Implants

Bone conduction devices and Esteem fully implantable hearing devices help restore hearing and communication in qualified patients. When hearing loss is so severe that you no longer benefit from traditional hearing aids, hearing implants offer a solution. Otolaryngologist and neurotologist Ricardo Cristobal, MD, PhD, FACS, offers cochlear implants. To learn more about hearing implants, call Texas Ear Clinic in Fort Worth, Texas, today to schedule an appointment, or use this website to schedule.

Who needs hearing implants?

When you have severe hearing loss, conventional hearing aids may not amplify enough to help you hear again. Hearing implants can help restore hearing and communication, that’s important to your overall quality of life. 

Even if hearing implants can’t help you hear normally, they can – at the very minimum – allow you to detect sounds, especially warnings and alerts.

What are cochlear hearing implants?

Cochlear implants are appropriate for patients over the age of 10-12 months (even younger for exceptional circumstances). The implant is a small, electronic device that helps provide a sense of sound to a person who is born deaf or has become significantly hard of hearing thoughout life . A patient who is born deaf does best when cochlear implants are placed early in life.

The implant has an external portion (the speech processor) that sits behind the ear and a second portion (the receiver/stimulator) that’s surgically implanted just under the skin.  Unlike a hearing aid, the implant does not amplify sound. Cochlear implants directly stimulate the auditory nerve to transmit sound signals to the brain. 

Patients will hear differently with cochlear implants.  Implant receiver patients do experience a meaningful improvement in sound detection and speech comprehension.

A person who gets a cochlear hearing implant will learn a new way to hear, and and typically can effectively detect warnings, sounds in the environment, and speech over time. 

The Texas Ear Clinic has a comprehensive cochlear implant team and has performed hundreds of successful implant surgeries in patients between 3 months of age and over 90 years old.   The patients may select between the three available devices in the market (Cochlear Americas, Advanced Bionics or Med El).

What are Osia and Baha® hearing implants?

Osia and Baha® implants are a trademark of the Cochlear™ corporation. They are a semi-implantable type of bone conduction hearing device that transmit sound vibrations to the inner ear through the bone of the skull to help you hear. 

There are some differences between the Osia device and the BAHA devices.  Dr. Cristobal and the audiology team at Texas Ear Clinic will explain these devices at lenght and have you try on a simulator so that you are completely comfortable with your choice of hearing amplification.

People with conductive and mixed hearing loss are candidates, including those with:

• Chronic infection of the ear canal
• Absent or a narrow ear canal
• Single-sided hearing loss after surgery or acoustic neuroma

This innovative technology is approved by the FDA. 

ARE THERE NON-SURGICAL BONE-CONDUCTION HEARING DEVICES?

For patients who cannot undergo or do not want a brief surgical procedure, other bone conduction hearing devices are available, such as the Med El Adhear and the BAHA device with a headband.

WHAT IS THE ESTEEM FULLY IMPLANTABLE HEARING DEVICE?

The Esteem device Is an implantable hearing aid that is placed surgically fully underneath the skin. It captures the eardrum vibration with sound and delivers sound to the third bone of hearing underneath the drum.  It provides the freedom from having to wear an external device.  A hearing and imaging evaluation must be done prior to qualifying for this device.

Learn more about hearing implants and whether they’re right for you. Call Texas Ear Clinic today to set up an appointment or schedule via this website.