There’s a new kid on the block and its name is electric cochlear important, representing a way to reduce the challenge the struggle those with severe forms of hearing loss face each day. That is through the use of an electric cochlear implant. This device addresses far more than a simple hearing aid does and actually involves implantation in the skull. While hearing aids, in all of their various forms, have been the most common solution to hearing loss, cochlear implants are quickly gaining ground for many individuals and are used only for people who have a profound amount of hearing loss. These devices, unlike traditional hearing aids, are actually anchored to the person’s skull to make a bypass which allows sound wave to be interpreted by the auditory nerve. However, just like hearing aids, they come with many advantageous benefits that we will check out in the following article.
Benefits Of Cochlear Implants
Though these devices can cost quite a bit, the significant benefits that they offer users make electric cochlear implants one of the most successful hearing devices on the market today. These electric cochlear implants are perfect for people who have tremendous amounts of hearing loss than cannot be improved much by the use of a hearing aid. Happily, the individual can “hear” sounds such as speech and environmental sounds. This helps the user regain a certain degree of safety and confidence as they proceed through their daily life with the ability to hear more with more clarity and consistency than ever before.
What Makes A Cochlear Implant?
Cochlear implants are devices, made up of several different parts, that can simulate sound for the wearer. Most parts of the device are located on the outside of the ear, while other pieces of the device feature implantation into the skin behind the ear. The parts of the device that are located on the external surface of the body are the microphone, speech processor, and a transmitter. Implanted beneath the skin are a receiver and an electrode cluster.
How Do Cochlear Implants Function?
You may wonder how does the electric cochlear implant function? Well, it works by using all four pieces in conjunction with one another to reproduce sound waves that simulate hearing. The microphone that is on the outside of the ear picks up sounds from the environment. Sounds are sent to the speech processor after that, which can be located near the microphone, or worn elsewhere on the body in order. This device interprets the sound and digitizes it so that it can be picked up by the transmitter, which sends the signals to the receiver that is implanted beneath the skin of the user. This receiver’s main function is to transmit all of the signals to the cluster of electrodes that were already implanted into the cochlea.