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Cochlear Implant

What is a Cochlear Implant?

If you want to expand communication options, or if hearing aids just aren’t enough, the time might be right to explore a cochlear implant. The Nucleus Freedom cochlear implant system can help connect you to a world of sound.

Simply put, a cochlear implant is a technological triumph. It's the only medical device designed to restore a human sense. It’s an alternative to traditional solutions like hearing aids, which often provide little or no benefit for someone with a severe-to-profound hearing loss.

The Nucleus Freedom cochlear implant system is comprised of a few different parts that work together to help you hear.

Everyone has a unique first experience with their cochlear implants. It’s important to remember that learning to hear with cochlear implants can be a gradual process for some, while others may understand new sounds right from the beginning. It can take time for the brain to adjust to this new way of hearing, so patience, practice and a positive attitude are important.

As part of our lifetime commitment, we offer rehabilitation tools and services to help you improve hearing, language, phone use and music appreciation.

Some of the benefits of cochlear implants include:

Social Situations

Many users may speak more clearly and understand speech more easily without relying on lip-reading.

Music and Phone

Many cochlear implant users can talk on the phone without the assistance of TTY or relay systems. Listening to music opens up a new world of enjoyment.
Environmental Sounds

Hear a wide array of important sounds like alarms, doorbells and approaching vehicles. Soak in the subtle sounds of nature, such as rain, birds singing or dogs barking.

How Natural Hearing Works:

1. Ear canal: Sound moves through the ear canal and strikes the eardrum.

2. Eardrum and bones: Sound waves cause the eardrum to vibrate, sending the bones in the middle ear into motion.

3. Inner ear: This motion causes the fluid inside the inner ear (cochlea) to move the hair cells.

4. Hearing nerve: Hair cells change the movement into electric impulses, which are sent to the hearing nerve into the brain; you hear sound.

 

How Nucleus Works:

1. Sound Processor: External sound processor captures sound and converts it into digital signals.

2. Digital Signals: Processor sends digital signals to internal implant.

3. Electrode Array: Internal implant converts signals into electrical energy, sending it to an electrode array inside the cochlea.

4. Hearing Nerve: Electrodes stimulate hearing nerve, bypassing damaged hair cells, and the brain perceives signals as sound.