Cochlear Implants for
Single-Sided Deafness
When you have hearing loss in one ear,
it's important to deliver sounds as naturally as
possible to match your hearing ear.
Full Range of Sound
Our cochleae are filled with tiny hair cells that correspond with specific tones or frequencies of sound. Think of your cochlea rolled across a piano keyboard. The high-pitched sounds, like birds chirping, activate the hair cells in the cochlea’s beginning, while the low-pitched sounds, such as dogs barking, activate deeper hair cells.[ft] [ft]
What does this mean for you?
The more access a cochlear implant electrode array has to your cochlea,
the wider range of sound frequencies you could hear.
MED-EL
Electrodes can provide nearly 100% coverage of hearing potential.
Cochlear
Advanced Bionics
Other companies use shorter arrays that can only stimulate the first turn of the cochlea, sometimes marketed as "the hearing zone," which means that low pitched sounds will be heard in that ear as middle or high frequency sounds.[ft] [ft]
At MED-EL, we don’t believe that a cochlear implant should stop at “good enough.” Our reliable cochlear implant systems and long electrode arrays offer you the widest range of sound and for your lifelong hearing journey.
"Hearing with only one ear is like living in a black and white world, without knowing that somewhere else colors exist."
Johanna Pätzhold
MED-EL Recipient and Music Professional
Benefits of Hearing in Stereo
with a MED-EL Cochlear Implant
Even with “one good ear,” everyday life with single-sided deafness (SSD) can be exhausting. Listening with one ear takes a bigger mental toll when trying to separate what you want to hear from the background noise. This impacts your ability to follow conversations or tell where sounds are coming from.
We know that restoring the benefits of hearing in both ears is important for you to capture each moment the way it was meant to sound, with far less listening effort.[ft] Thankfully, we designed our cochlear implants to use soft, flexible electrode arrays that are long enough to cover your cochlea to the fullest possible extent. An electrode long enough to reach the deeper, low pitched region is necessary to provide sound that is closest to natural hearing.
- Better speech understanding in noise
- Easier to follow group conversations
- Better hearing in busy places
- Recognize where sounds are coming from
- Less listening effort and fatigue
- Improved social interaction
- Significant improvement in quality of life
Contact Us
Don’t wait any longer to take the next step. Our team of hearing professionals is ready to answer any questions you may have to help you decide what is right for you.