I thought long and hard about whether I should get a second cochlear implant. But I'm glad I did. We recently activated my second implant, and it's as big a miracle as the first. In January I decided to go ahead if I qualified, and after several months of preliminary testing and insurance screening, I had successful implantation surgery on my left side on March 30. We … [Read more...] about Five Reasons I Went All In With A Second Cochlear Implant
Cochlear Implants
When Does A Hearing Disadvantage Become A Hearing Disability?
After my cochlear implant surgery was a success and I returned to the world of (more or less) normal hearing, I had a stunning revelation. In the months before my surgery, when my hearing loss had progressed to "profound," I had been living with a serious disability. But even as I struggled daily with hearing aids that barely helped and as I suffered from growing social … [Read more...] about When Does A Hearing Disadvantage Become A Hearing Disability?
They Turned On My Cochlear Implant, And I Feel Like I Won The Lottery
I finally got my cochlear implant, and on July 1 they turned it on. The surgery on June 20 had gone well, but like everyone else who must await activation, I had no idea how well it would work in restoring my hearing once it went live. But when the audiologist attached the external processor and activated it, I experienced a modern miracle. … [Read more...] about They Turned On My Cochlear Implant, And I Feel Like I Won The Lottery
Life At The Cutting Edge: FDA Weighed Tradeoffs In Approving Hybrid Cochlear Implant
In approving Cochlear Ltd.'s Nucleus Hybrid L24 Implant System for use in the United States, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had to balance some serious demonstrable risks against many obvious benefits of the new implant system. The biggest problem some early users experienced -- complete loss of their low-frequency hearing in the implanted ear -- might seem to … [Read more...] about Life At The Cutting Edge: FDA Weighed Tradeoffs In Approving Hybrid Cochlear Implant
FDA Approves Hybrid Cochlear Implant That Also Acts As A Hearing Aid
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the Cochlear™ Nucleus® Hybrid™ L24 Implant System for use in the United States. It is the first implantable device for people 18 and older with severe or profound sensorineural hearing loss of high-frequency sounds in both ears, but who can still hear low-frequency sounds with or without a hearing aid. "By amplifying … [Read more...] about FDA Approves Hybrid Cochlear Implant That Also Acts As A Hearing Aid