Children are carefully evaluated but may receive an implant at 18 months. A cochlear implant is an electronic device that provides the function of the damaged or absent hair cells by providing electrical stimulation to the remaining nerve fibers. The implant provides useful hearing and improved communication abilities to the implant user. A cochlear implant is a safe, reliable and effective treatment for severe to profound hearing loss in adults and profound hearing loss in children. Early research on cochlear implants began in France in 1957.
Hearing aids amplify sound, making the sounds louder.
The sounds produced by the most sophisticated hearing aids may not offer much benefit to people with profound hearing loss. Sounds are picked up by the small, directional microphone located in the headset at the ear. A thin cord carries the sound from the microphone to the speech processor, a powerful miniaturized computer. The speech processor filters, analyzes and digitizes the sound into coded signals. The coded signals are sent from the speech processor to the transmitting coil.