Hearing Implants
As a College Student, and at the very beginning of her Audiology Career, Dr. Srour developed a profound passion for Hearing Implants. After obtaining her Doctorate in Audiology, Dr. Srour studied an additional year and graduated with a specialty in Cochlear Implants. Years of experience working for a leading hearing implant manufacturer as well as directly with patients and their families led Dr. Srour into a leadership role in Brooklyn’s only Cochlear Implant Center at SUNY Downstate Medical Center. Dr. Srour enjoyed the experience from start to finish, meeting a patient for their Hearing Implant Evaluation, performing operational checks during their Surgery, and and later for turning on and programming the hearing implant. SUNY Downstate is the leader in Brooklyn for Hearing Implants and Dr. Srour cannot say enough great things about the Otologist, Dr. Matthew Hanson and all of the supporting staff on the Cochlear Implant Team. Currently, Dr. Srour offers programming services to several Hearing Implants for Adult patients. Below is a summary of various Hearing Implants, including when and why they may be recommended and how they function. If you or someone believes they may be a candidate for a Hearing Implant, please feel free to inquire any questions you have to Dr. Srour and she will be happy to answer them as well as refer you for a hearing implant evaluation.
Bone Conduction Implants
A bone conduction implant is a surgically implanted device designed to help people with particular forms of hearing loss who cannot be helped with hearing aids. Hearing aids transmit sound through air conduction. The bone conduction implant stimulates the inner ear directly through the bones of our skull, thereby bypassing the outer and middle ear. Once the inner ear receives the sound signals, the information is converted into neural signals and transferred to the brain, where it is perceived as sound. There are now many different kinds of bone conduction implants on the market which are reviewed below. Each one has its advantages and disadvantages.
Bone Conduction Implant Candidacy
Patients with chronic middle ear conditions, outer ear problems or congenital defects of the ear who can’t wear hearing aids, or can’t consistently wear hearing aids without getting infections may be a candidate for a bone conduction implant. In this scenario, the other ear must have normal up to a maximum moderate hearing loss.
A second category of Bone Conduction Implants candidates are patients with “single sided deafness”. This includes patients who have lost all or most of their hearing in one ear to the point of being unaidable with a hearing aid. The other ear must have good, or near-normal hearing.
What is a Cochlear Implant?
A cochlear implant is an excellent alternative when hearing aids can no longer provide the best support. A cochlear implant is a partially implanted medical device designed to restore the sense of hearing. During surgery, It is inserted into the cochlea, the sensory organ of the inner ear. The cochlear nerve is directly stimulated, bypassing the external ear, middle ear, and inner ear with its damaged hair cells. After successful cochlear implantation and programming, most patients are able to hear conversations and environmental sounds at comfortable loudness levels, understand others with less effort, and improve their lip reading skills and telephone use.
A cochlear implant system consists of an external sound processor and an internal receiver. The internal receiver is surgically implanted with its electrode array fully inserted into the cochlea. After healing has occurred, the external speech processor can be worn on or behind the ear and is programmed by an Audiologist specializing in Cochlear Implants. The speech processor consists of a microphone, signal processor, and a transmitter. The transmitter connects to the internal receiver via a magnet. The speech processor captures sound, converts it into a digital signal, where it is then sent to the internal implant. The implant converts the digital signal into an electrical signal. The electrical signal is transmitted via the electrode array inside the cochlea, and the auditory nerve is then stimulated to carry sound to the brain.
Cochlear Implant Candidacy
Candidacy is determined by a team of professionals upon completion of an extensive evaluation to determine if an individual is a suitable candidate for a cochlear implant. The cochlear implant candidacy evaluation includes an extensive audiological evaluation by an audiologist with and without hearing aids being worn in the sound booth, a medical evaluation by an otologist, a radiological evaluation including a CT/MRI, and educational, psychological and speech and language evaluations in children.