Cochlear Implants

A cochlear implant is a type of hearing aid that converts sound into electrical signals. Cochlear implants are for people who have no benefit from hearing aids. Instead of simply making sounds louder as a conventional hearing aid, the cochlear implant provides a sensation of hearing by bypassing the damaged hair cells in the cochlear and directly stimulating the auditory nerves using electrical signals. There are around 12,000 people in the UK who use cochlear implants.

Cochlear implants are unable to restore normal levels of hearing and the degree of hearing provided can vary with different children. But the majority of children who have permanent serve to profound deafness are now able to access these and understand speech and language using only cochlear implants.

How does the cochlear implant work is very common question I get asked.

The microphone of the cochlear implant picks up the sound and the speech processor converts the sound waves into a digital code which is then sent to the transmitter coil.

The transmitter coil then sends the coded signal through the skin to the implanted receiver which is located just under the skin. the receiver converts the digital code to an electrical signal.This signal is then sent from the implanted receiver via a wire to the electrodes in the cochlear.

The electrodes stimulate the cochlear nerve fibres and they send the signal to the brain which then the brain interprets these signals so the child can understand what was said.

The sound through the cochlear implants isn't the same as the sound heard from a person with normal hearing.

Before we deciding to go ahead with the cochlear implants for Daisy we need to sit down and talk about the lifetime commitment we have with looking after the cochlear implant. Their will be regular visits to Nottingham hospital, both before and after the operation. Us, our family and professionals will need to provide a lot of long-term support for Daisy. As when she takes off the speech processor for bedtime etc.. she will still be deaf.

The cochlear implant team and surgeon, will discuss with us the potential risks and benefits. It is now very common for children to be implanted before 12 months of age. So that she doesn't fall to far behind on her speech and language skills.

There are only a few risks such as;

• Meningitis
• Facial nerve
• Infection
• Device failure
• Balance problems/dizziness
• Metallic taste in the mouth

These are very slim but we have to be told.

The surgery is normally carried out as a day case but some occasions it may involve a overnight stay in hospital. The operation is performed under generally anaesthetic and typically lasts between two to three hours. If Daisy goes ahead to have two cochlear implants then it may take longer.

Three to four weeks after surgery we will have an appointment where we will fit and start the programming the external part of the cochlear implant. We have been told that the response from Daisy may not be positive as it will be abit of a shock for her.