Specialty Devices Hearing Aids

Specialty hearing devices are available for those patients who cannot utilize traditional hearing aids. Some of these devices include the Bone Anchored Hearing Aid (Baha), TransEar, Contralateral Routing of the Signal (CROS), or Bilateral Contralateral Routing of the Signal (BiCROS), and cochlear implants.

Baha:

  • A small screw and abutment is surgically implanted into the bone behind the ear and a processor is attached to the abutment approximately three months after surgery.
  • This device is intended for patients who have a history of middle ear disease or for patients with no measurable hearing in one ear (single-sided deafness), who cannot benefit from traditional hearing aids.
  • Sound vibrations are transferred to the functioning cochlea via bone conduction.

TransEar:

  • Bone conduction BTE hearing aid
  • Fits behind the ear and is attached to a wire with a small bone conduction oscillator encased in an earmold deep in the ear canal
  • Intended for patients having single sided deafness

 

 

 

CROS or BiCROS:

  • Patients having no measurable hearing in one ear, but have normal hearing in the better ear might benefit from CROS; a microphone transmitter is worn on the poorer ear and a receiver is worn in the better ear; sound from the transmitter on the poorer ear is routed to the receiver and coupled to the better ear.
  • Patients with no measurable hearing in the poorer ear and an aidable hearing loss in the better ear may benefit from BiCROS; a microphone transmitter is worn on the poorer ear and a receiving hearing aid is worn on the better ear.
  • These instruments can be BTE or ITE hearing aids.
  • These devices can wirelessly transmit sound or can route sound using a wire connecting the transmitter and receiver.

 

 

 

Cochlear Implants:

  • Cochlear implants are for patients with moderately-severe to profound hearing loss and poor speech understanding who do not receive benefit from traditional hearing aids.
  • An electrode array is implanted into the inner ear and a processor is worn over the outer ear.
  • Sound is picked up by the processor microphone, analyzed, and transmitted to the internal implant via a magnet.
  • The internal implant converts the input into electrical signals, which are transferred to the electrodes.
  • The electrodes then stimulate the cochlear nerve.