Ivana Marinac

Hi Debbie once again, yes, Dr. Tucci is long in a business this gave her opportunity to track the advancement for decades and Duke is awesome institution. That being said, I have gad a rare opportunity to hear an European Goliath - Prof. Fraysee defending the line: CROS, BAHA .... and eventually CI. But, partially my participation in various groups is to gain knowledge and observations from much bigger pool than my patient base could ever be. Not linked with your story, but I defended my right fir bilateral hearing against another giant who made career in a field if unilateral conductive hearing loss thinking that he will understand me before everybody else. Oh boy, what a surprise but I’ve believed in my opinion and it stoid against the opinion people who were never in my shoes. Ok, administration is totally different thing - that’s reality I can not conquer with romantic but there is a line of people who use a CI unilaterally and thinks about it as a touchdown. Lets not end with negative thoughts, BB will definitely give you oart of you’re missing, just - thruth is deserved to be told as well as the observation that a CI is not a toy, although hard work give results.

It’s a typical situation with people who have a mixed hearing loss - you tend to insuflate E. tube and middle ear, maybe some effusion there accumulate through years and it improves sound transfer. Eardrum can be repaired in any way, even the ossicle chain can be build out of artificial prosthesis, but - hearing cells (if this is a real situation at the audiogram) are nit vampires or zombies: once heavy damaged - can’t be replaced. Only partially substituted with internal cochlea electrode which would bypass them.

Hi Funky, they tried to repair your eardrum but not from skin. Actually, watching your audiogram reveals that your hearing on your left ear is pretty much decent up to 2 kHz, but what strucked ny mind is your hearing loss further which is quite significant, at 4 kHz it suits into the category of deafness. So, you’re wrong - part of your cochlea or outer hearing cells hardly work in one significant area, so there is a disproportional hearing due to the insufficient higher band - we’ll get back to this stuff. Your audiogram looks like a typical hearing loss threshold caused by acoustic trauma, not much as the result of chronic otitis media on that side. Looking at your situation, maybe your test with Ponto revealed you thruth - bone conduction nor active middle ear implant will not regain your wish for full directionality; only one implant can do with your type of hearing loss - EAS because the rest of threshold is more or less functional. Soundbridge do well up to 80 dB but no more than of that, and you have a significant loss between 3 and 8 kHz. Higher freqencies tend to be more directional and therefore help with a sound localisation. Physics behind it is described here: https://knowingneurons.com/2013/03/15/how-does-the-brain-locate-sound-sources/

Hello Funky! can you be more specific about the type of your hearing loss? Sensorineural, conductive or mixed? Also, if you know any value of your hearing loss threshold - it would help enormously to tailor the best answer for you. in short, don’t worry - it is even louder than it is in a technical details of the device. There said up to 45dB, I have used it for a five full years with a bilateral conductive hearing loss of 65dB average. you don’t worry it will be louder since fittings are superb, also after a period of getting use - your brain will adapt both on the quality of sound as well as on the intensity. if you have a healthy other ear and without significant damage of the ear which is intended for an implantation - yes, you will be able to tegain directionality. If the other ear is damaged, or this is has a dignose of single-sided deafness - than no: one side-hearing is not enough.

Yes! London Reunion! ??

@Debbie from US hello again, pardon me for not involving myself before for a response..... Mary Beth was on the path I wanted to explain, you are a classic (up to now) patient for a single CI which would really revive your hearing on the affected side. I stand behind this although Prof.Tucci is on the other side - she’s really a giant in this world of implant technology. But, I have seen people fron the U.S. getting unilateral CI - I don’t quite understand your conditions but I have taught that everything is not possible only - if it is not tried. Regarding me, I am “the expert” because I wear them now more than 5 years. My professional skills (I am an ENT in Europe) allow me to understand the problem from the scientific and health side, but financial part is pretty cloudy for me. My indication for the implantation was a classic conductive hearing loss. Regarding you, there is no doubt you will have certain benefits, although I am known for “chasing the stars” so I always prefer the best possible, not the best accessible solution for a patient. Good luck - please let us now a out your experiences! If there is anyhow I can help..... please, just ask!

Huh, well... Hello Debbie, there are few problems before making any conclusion. 1. How low is your hearing threshold at the affected ear? 2. Are your symptoms yet visible (and hearable) at just one ear? To make an explanation behind my questions: 1. A hearing threshold is goong up and down, and we still don’t know how much it will go down in certain presentation. 2. Meniere could be uni-lateral, but also there are very often bilateral cases of presentation and, to be honest - these presentations frequently are not synchronous. This mean, at first is affected one ear and then it reveals on the other. I am writing this at first to underline the importance of careful evaluation of proper implant in a - measure of time. Second, and lighter part of the story: depending of how low your hearing threshold is now, you can expect the summation of hearing effects. People who has a really bad hearing loss reported that has certain improvement, especially in loud settings of bars and restaurants. If ear is not deaf 100% you can have the ability of direction also. From the aspect of difference between BAHA and Bonebridge - although I was not given a choice, I would choose Bonebridge again simply because I have never had any side-effect common much frequently (since with BB it is 0%) with BAHA: in situ infection, sticking out of head, urge to be careful with sport activities, no water-activities with BAHA (there’s no water-resistant cover on the market). If there are further questions - please, just ask! ??

It was incredible - like you dream something and than puf! It happens! To meet a person in live with whom you’ve exchanged so many HP and PM messages and - you’ve never seen each other... - Just imagine.... it was my privilege and honour to meet you, Mary Beth!

Hello Gang ? dear Loresh - don’t take surgery as something bad, actually the Bonebridge has least side-effects from all bone-conduction implants/devices (BCI/D). On the other side, Adhear is something what could be tested almost effortlessly. To mix the story additionally- none BCD Sounds equally implant vs. non implanted situation. The implanted sotuation was always better. Usual experiences of people all around say that they benefit from a device on the affected hearing. Hard to explain why if one cochlea or nerve is dead and the contralateral hearing is perfect....

Unfortunately - I didn’t. of course it can. I am still not familiar regarding the directionality however. Researches shown that Bonebridge does not disturb it, but Soundbridge might. Conclusions are based on long-term work of German scientists, e.g. Dr. Frenzel.

This doesn’t sound good - either your processor is a problematic part, either I would advise checking on how your implant stays in its bed. Sound should be cristal clear, not nearly having these problems. You shouldn’t have problem regarding adapting, esoecially if your hearing aud gives you a more superior quality. The impant is nearer than the aid so - there shouldn’t be such differences...

Yes, and yes! Nothing without the audiologist and - a special wire for it. There is no looped theatres in Croatia and I do not really need it so I’ve never asked for it. However, I could imagine that sound in my head: cristal clear without any interference...

Well Hils27, I advise you to ask for a free-field tonal audiogram - my clinical engineer direct from the MedEL says that’s the best way to make fine tunning of your processors. Echo can be a problem in the beginning of using of new processors. if you get Siemens miniTek you don’t need to have a remote control. There is also a mobile phone program which do basically same: change programs and turn up or turn down volume. If you put miniTek or remote in a mid line you control both processors; if you want to control them separately, you need to move cliser miniTek to the side where the processor you want to control - is. It’s pretty easy and convenient to use it. I find Samba better than Amade because sound quality is much better, fine structure is much more smooth... there are more channels in Samba.

Hello folks, to finally drop in as I have promised to Mary who signaled me to pm to revive me from the Sleeping Beauty mode. Let’s work - not making excuses... At first, @Hils27 Before Samba, the actual processor was Amade: you must thought on that when you mentioned VS, because the VS is the whole system: outer and inner part, but Samba and amade are - the outer. Secondly, using of remote control when you have two implants is that you put it in the median line, right beneath the chin. Doing like this you can navigate with both Sambas at the same time. Regarding echoing, it’s almost always the matter of the proper fitting. Did you test your Sambas in the free field speech audiometry.

There was also a study where Med-EL included patients into a study with Soundbridge, another interesting active middle ear implant. a difference is pretty evident, Baha is on the abutment (magnetic plate version I do not recommend) and Bonebridge is totally invisible, implanted into a temporal bone. really don't know what are plans with BB, but there is a review where it was found that between all BC implants, BB has least side-effects, skin or device malfunction. I am pretty sad that it is not advertised more. People usually refuse it because of its size. On the other side, datas show unparalled advantage regarding at least 2 characteristics. regarding your cousin, he won't make a mistake even woth BAHA although it is greater pain in the ass to maintain the implant position. Beside Cochlear there is also Oticon's version of BAHA - he should test both versions. In my opinion, BAHA was a great improvement when it has shown up - but test of time (40 years) has to offer us an advancement in this field. I see it in BB, believed enough to agree with the implantation in time when it was not clear whether it will stand against a test of time. Six years on the market and two significant chatacteristics for patients - priceless.