Implants for cochlear hearing are devices that help reduce hearing loss. They aren’t able to repair their hearing. Instead, they increase your ability to comprehend speech and hear more sounds. Children and adults who have cochlear implants gain from auditory therapy, which helps them to get used to hearing again.
What are Cochlear Doctors in Ahmedabad?
Cochlear implants are devices made of electronic components that assist in controlling hearing loss. Your doctor may suggest this treatment for you if you suffer from moderate, severe, or even extreme hearing loss in either or both ears and aren’t receiving the benefits from those hearing aids. You could also get cochlear implants if you’re hearing aids function, but you don’t comprehend speech as clearly as you would prefer.
Cochlear implants can’t repair your hearing. However, they can enhance your ability to recognize speech and also hear different sounds.
Types of Cochlear Implant in India
The cochlear implants in Ahmedabad have an external part that you wear as well as an internal component which a surgeon can place during surgery:
- External components comprise a microphone, a processor, and a transmitter.
- Internal components include electrodes as well as the receiver.
The way you wear the external components of the device is dependent on the model you choose:
- One model rests on your ear and comes with an extension cable that connects to a disc that is on the back of the head.
- Another design attaches to the sides of your head and does not require an earpiece.
How Cochlear Implant in Ahmedabad Works
In contrast to hearing aids that increase the volume of sound, cochlear implants do not bypass damaged areas that make up your hearing. The majority of hearing issues arise due to worn sensory hair cells in the cochlea (sensorineural hearing loss). The cochlea is located in your inner ear located deep within your skull. It transforms the signals from your ear into electrical signals, which your brain interprets into sound.
Cochlear implants provide a brand new route for sound to reach your brain. It’s like this:
- The microphone you wear is a sound processor that records audio signals entering your ear’s outer.
- The sound processor relays a signal to the receiver (usually connected to your scalp using the help of a magnet).
- The transmitter converts these signals to electrical pulses, which go through the receiver. The receiver is a device beneath your skin, which is in opposition to the transmitter.
- The receiver relays the signals to the electrodes in the cochlea.
- The electrodes capture the electrical impulses and transmit them to the hearing (auditory) nerve.
- The auditory nerve is the one that transmits signals to your brain.
Your brain interprets electrical impulses as sound, speech, or any other sound.
Procedure Details
What Happens During Cochlear Treatment in Ahmedabad?
The first step is to undergo cochlear implant surgery in order to insert the internal components. This is an outpatient procedure, meaning you’ll be able to go home the next day. The surgeon (an otolaryngologist) will:
- General anesthesia will put you to rest.
- Cut a tiny hole (incision) in the ear area
- Make an opening in the bone behind your ear.
- Utilize the opening to position the internal components of your device.
- Make use of stitching (sutures) in order to seal the earlobe incision
After two weeks of surgery, you’ll be scheduled for an appointment for a follow-up to put in an external part. The hearing expert (audiologist) is a person who:
- Set the microphone and sound processor in the appropriate place and adjust the size to fit.
- Verify the device to make sure that all components are in order
- Connect the device to your computer and listen to what you hear.
- Adjust the device to ensure you’re hearing, and you can.
How Long Will I Need a Cochlear Implant?
The cochlear implant will be with you for life, which means you’ll be working with surgeons and audiologists throughout your life. Regular appointments will be scheduled with your healthcare team to confirm:
- Your device’s settings are working optimally.
- Your device is functioning perfectly (in general, the internal components last forever, while the external components typically last 5 to 10 years)
- The skin on the area that is the location of your magnet (the part that is on the scalp) is healthy
What are the Potential Benefits and Risks of Having a Cochlear Implant?
The advantages of cochlear implants are far greater than the potential risks. This is the case whether you suffer from complete loss of hearing or you use hearing aids to help, but you still want to hear properly.
Here’s a brief overview of the advantages:
- Cochlear implants allow you to listen to phone calls and part in conversations with others as well as in noisy environments.
- People who experience hearing loss (tinnitus) caused by hearing loss may experience improvement.
- Children with hearing loss typically begin to speak at the same time as children with no hearing loss. (Children aged 9 months or older could have a cochlear implant.)
All surgeries are not without risk. While they’re not common, the risk factors specific to cochlear implant surgery are:
- Nerves are damaged at the site of surgery
- Meningitis (your physician may suggest that you be vaccinated against the meningitis virus to decrease the chance of contracting it)
- Hearing loss that is not residual (the hearing you can hear despite profound or severe hearing loss)
- Tinnitus (although cochlear implants typically enhance tinnitus in the majority of people)
- Cerebrospinal fluid leaks
- Balance issues, such as vertigo and dizziness
Recovery and Outlook
How Long Will It Take Me To Feel better?
It might take some time before you notice a major improvement. It’s because your brain needs to learn to process sound. In general, hearing improves after about a month following their implants have been activated. In some cases, it takes up or six months to allow patients to achieve their full hearing capacity.
While you’re there, it’s most likely to collaborate with an audiologist or speech-language pathologist (SLP). They’ll help develop your brain to comprehend the meaning of sounds. It is essential to commit to using auditory-based therapy to maximize the benefits of the implant.
What does a person who has a Cochlear Implant Hear?
Adults who have cochlear implants typically comment that their speech sounds robotic at first. However, eventually the sounds produced by the implant will sound natural. The earlier you are able to receive implants, the simpler it will be to adjust to the new method of hearing.
However, the rate of learning is largely dependent on the kind of hearing loss you suffer from and its severity it. The time you dedicate to therapy also plays a role.
Is There Anything I Can Do to Make Having a Cochlear Implant Easier on Me?
To maximize the benefits of this procedure:
- Make sure you use your implant regularly. This is achieved by wearing the external microphone/processor when you’re awake for the proper duration of time every day.
- Participate in therapy. Your brain is learning to recognize signals. The therapy sessions aid in that process.
- Find out what you can’t do using the cochlear implant. You’ll have to take off the outer part of your device if you swim or bathe. You might need to steer clear of certain contact sports. A blow to the head can cause damage to the implant.
- Find out the things you can accomplish using the cochlear implant. Instead of limiting your life, a cochlear implant will allow you to interact with people like never before. The audiologist will explain the ways your new device can help you better understand people and interact with them.
When Should I Call My Healthcare Provider?
Inform your doctor if you notice changes in your hearing or if you are experiencing any discomfort or earaches in your ear. Inform them immediately when the child or you show symptoms of infection, like redness and fever, swelling, or drainage at the site of surgery.
Additional Common Questions
Can a Deaf Person Hear With a Cochlear Implant in Ahmedabad?
It depends. Cochlear implants can’t help to hear as well as you would without damage to the inner ear. However, it can assist you in listening to sounds that will help to understand what other people are saying to you. It helps you recognize the sounds around you that alert you to risk. An audiologist or SLP could provide you with the instruments you require to make the most of the implant.
I Have Some Hearing Ability, So Will I Lose All Hearing If I Have A Cochlear Implant?
But not always. The past has shown that you can expect to lose your hearing completely after surgery to implant a cochlear device. But modernized procedures for cochlear implant surgery and implant design mean that around half of patients have their hearing restored following surgery.
Evara Hospital: Best ENT Specialist in Ahmedabad
A cochlear implant may transform your life. If you’re suffering from lost hearing, this could be a way to return to a world that you thought you would never experience. When your baby was born hearing impaired, the cochlear implant may be the first step into the world of sounds. But the procedure for cochlear implants is only the beginning. Your child or you may require hearing rehabilitation therapy to learn how to hear. It could take time. However, your hearing care team is there with you all the process.
Care at Evara Hospital
The Cochlear implant in Ahmedabad will assist your child to hear better and connect with others around them. Evara Hospital Children’s is here to help your child hear in the lives of children.