Initial Activation of BB today Feb 8 (SSD)

[Regula]

[Thanks, Pablo, for creating this new section!]

 

Today, my Bonebridge was activated - and it was a great experience!

 

I'll try to be brief, and summarize the key points.

 

Background

Reason for Bonebridge: Single Sided Deafness of right ear due to (suspected) viral infection, October 2010. Test of CROS-hearing aid with radio transmission to healthy ear proved unsatisfactory.

Implant operation: January 11, 2013 at University Hospital

Activation: University hospital, hearing specialist (MD).

 

Special circumstances: I agreed to participate in a MEDEL-sponsored study carried out at 4 universities, designed to find out about the effectiveness of BB in noisy situations.

 

Sequence of activation session

1. Hearing test without hearing aids, additional frequencies tested
2. Initial activation, audio processor had been preprogrammed and was adjusted during the session for my hearing experience
3. Language comprehension test part1: hearing test with background noise, without audio processor (part of study)
4. 45 minute test phase, I was instructed to go outside, listen to various sounds with the 3 different programs
5. Language comprehension test part 2: hearing test with background nois, with audio processor switched on (part of study)

Next appointment is in one month, follow up appointments for study after 6, 12, 18 months.

 

Impressions after 10 hours of wearing the BB

• I hear a lot more sounds than during the last 2 years, but it didn't feel overwhelming at all - great
• Two adjustments made after my walk outside: background noise caught with the omnidirectional microphone was very loud and felt like static, so this was turned down a little. Sounds like s, sh sounded very aggressive, so this frequency band was turned down a little as well. - The experience is so new that I didn't feel ready to have the specialist fiddle much more with initial settings.
• Sound quality: surprisingly good, superior to Baha headband, and to CROS hearing aid. No whistling sounds due to feedback. Background noise sounds the same, whether it is a car passing by, a truck, a train or a street car - but possibly, my brain will have to  learn to distinguish the sounds. Other: Some sounds are amplified too much, e.g clacking of the keyboard, steps on the pavement. Will check during second appointment whether this can be corrected without too much loss in other areas.
• Language comprehension: not very good as of yet, I hear, but find it hard to understand - again, this will take practice. Using a telephone on the BB side didn't work at all. I tired very quickly during the hearing test with background noise.
• Wearing the BB was very comfortable.

[bigguns]

Hi!

 

Fredrik from Sweden here. 

I´ve used my bonebridge now for a lott more than 100 hours now.

I rellay happy to see that you experience the same "noice feeling" with the reciver as I do.

 

For ex:

Sounds like s, sh sounded very aggressive, yes to that.

Some sounds are amplified too much, e.g clacking of the keyboard, steps on the pavement. yes to that to.

And I´m adding, the sound of an analog clock, seconds ticking. Close too tortyr for the brain:)

Language comprehension: not very good as of yet, I hear, but find it hard to understand,   Yes to that and I call it distortion. And letters in words seems to dissapear.

 

Let´s remember, I´ve been death on left side now for almoust 40 years, so the brain is probably in a learning fase. ( read my profilestory)

BUT i now what good sound quality is, and I´ve not experiensed that yet, with the bonebridge.

 

How did you do on the language comprehension test ? in % mesuared.

 

Best regards / Fredrik 

 

 

 

[Regula]

Hi Fredrik

I just saw your comment.

 

I discussed this phenomenon of distorted sounds with my audiologist, and I wrote down his replies in the topic

How to practice listening/understanding with BB?

My next extended round of language comprehension testing will be in July, so I can't really give you a score yet.

[bigguns]

Hi Regula!

 

Really nice to hear from you, finally

I would really like to keep this discussion intakt with you.

 

1:st question to you.  How long have you been single deaf?

I interprets your erlier text that it´s since oct 2010.

Why I´m asking:  I don´t buy that reasoning about the brain has to learn noices , if in your case, hearing loss i pretty recently.

That reassoning fit me better because I was born single deaf 40 years ago.

What am I trying to tell you here....... You shall never ever accept a pourly vice recognition from the BB.    I will not, ever.

 

Well what new here with my BB.....

 

Let´see...., ohh yeaa.    Now the BB, 6 month after activation actually "works". I  hade to "fly in" my supplier too  the small town that i live in.

And we did a reconnection and workt with BB software for 3 hours.

I now have the "input level" set to level 3. (there are 4 input levels to choose from) Earlier I hade level 2, obviously malfunction for some reson. 

And what happens, yes now the program place n:o 2 (noise program) works as i should. (Never workt before)

Program place 1 and 3  ( program place 3, music and tv noice,erased) now are the same,

 with the difference that place 3 is 6 db lower. So I feel more free to choose level depending on situation.

Here i really miss a volym button.

Program place 1 is pretty extreme to use in daily situations, but works ok with the TV or other noice, reproduced via speakers.

 

Otherwise software changes, the 4 (of 16) top frequency band was set down 6 db or more. Shall put them down more some day now.

"strong noice" was set down 6 db and " weak sounds"  we gained 6 db. Right or wrong,,,,,,,, well, THERE IS STILL problem with distortion in

the speech recognition.

My lifesaver is now the prog place n:o 2 (noice program). here the woices from other people is pretty acceptble, no distortion, but volym a little bit to low. This program I have no problem to use 12 hours i  row.

 

I´ll be back

 

 

[Regula]

 

Hi Fredrik

 

I may not always quick in replying because I work in a seasonal business, and spring is terribly busy!

 

Here are my replies.

 

1:st question to you.  How long have you been single deaf?

I interprets your erlier text that it´s since oct 2010.

Why I´m asking:  I don´t buy that reasoning about the brain has to learn noices , if in your case, hearing loss i pretty recently.

That reassoning fit me better because I was born single deaf 40 years ago.

 

Yes, the period of my single-sided deafness was 2 years and 5 months only. During that time, I also developed hyperakusis, I got very intolerant of sounds to the point of where loud sounds were actually painful, because what little reached my ear was very distorted. I stopped listening to music, didn't listen to the radio, didn't go to the movies, avoided loud places in general and preferred silence to the normal noisy world.

So I disagree with you: I definitely have to learn again how to deal with sound.

 

But I would agree that your experience after 40 years of being deaf is an even stronger case for learning how to deal with noise.

 

What am I trying to tell you here....... You shall never ever accept a pourly vice recognition from the BB.    I will not, ever.

 

No, me neither. My audiologist is capable and experienced, so I got settings that I could work with from the start.

And knowing that this is a complex process involving both technical settings and my brains adaptation to it, I am patient and optimistic.

And what happens, yes now the program place n:o 2 (noise program) works as i should. (Never workt before)

Program place 1 and 3  ( program place 3, music and tv noice,erased) now are the same,

with the difference that place 3 is 6 db lower. So I feel more free to choose level depending on situation.

Here i really miss a volym button.

...

My lifesaver is now the prog place n:o 2 (noice program). here the woices from other people is pretty acceptble, no distortion, but volym a little bit to low. This program I have no problem to use 12 hours i  row.

I also find program 2 very helpful. But my audiologist was also able to tweak no 1 to the point where I get less distortion now. I think he is cutting off peaks. We tested it by banging on a table with various objects - something which had really made me cringe before. Also, the ss,sh and tsh sounds have improved.

A volume button would indeed be helpful. But I guess what has helped me most, is finetuning with various frequencies.

In the mean time, I hope your hearing experience continues to improve,

Kind regards from Switzerland,

Regula

 

[Guest]

Brain is pretty elastic Frederik,

so there is no wonder that Regula`s brain "forgot" some sounds or at least forgot to make fine tunings.

 

But, the fact that this is not natural ear is also something what should be evaluated when we discuss about hearing with hearing aid.

So - it is totally wrong to compare with what you had than to extract as much as you can from what you have now.

Of course, at some point this is philosophical challenge: is the bottle half full or the other way?

I usually tell people it is much easier to lower your expectations but to maximize your possibilities - you will be a lot more satisfied with the accomplished.

[Guest]

Frederik,

 

I have read your profile story now - did anything from your experience improved since you wrote your story?

 

Secondly, I have understood you have atresia of the ear canal but what about your middle ear - is it normal?

 

Did you ever consider surgical opening of the ear canal if your middle ear is all right.

[bigguns]

 

Frederik,

 

I have read your profile story now - did anything from your experience improved since you wrote your story?

 

Secondly, I have understood you have atresia of the ear canal but what about your middle ear - is it normal?

 

Did you ever consider surgical opening of the ear canal if your middle ear is all right.

 

Hi Ivana!

 

1. I wrote erlier in this thread, 20/3, about my "second" activation (6 th of mars) with the supplier.

The first one, made in october 2012 was a disaster. And I feel my audiologist is too poor trained with this new complex sofware for the BB.

Remember i´m the first one ,with atresia, in scandinavia surgery with BB.

 

 

2. Yes , atresia on left with outer ear 95% developed. Right side 100%, inner an outer.

Left side earphone ok, but ossicles are not attached as they chould be.

 

3. I was offered reconstruktion 20 years ago by Dr Ekwall (famous ENT doctor in Sweden).

I asked then for kopies af other operated patients audiograms so I could see what a they performed after surgery.

But I was just seen one and that did´nt satisfyed me then, so I denied.

Then there  are allways a lot of risks to handel with that kind of advaced surgery.

But I now  for afact now that they are doing reconstruction on 5 years old now.

 

My Best/ Fredrik

[Ivana Marinac]

I have made my observation about handling customers in my topic.

 

Here about external meatal atresia:

Yes, reconstructions can be done. There are numerous authors who made their surgical observation but is is not always

easy to do. You have to satisfy certain criteria, anathomical at first place.

Maybe you could explore some options for your son.

According to your words, you have problem with middle ear also but perhaps it is possible to create external opening just to add little bit of air conducted part of transmitted sound in your audiogram. Alone, it could be not enough but with some device...

 

Also, why they proposed to you BB and not Vibrant Soundbridge? Is your middle ear heavy malformed?

There is possibility to put VSB on fenestra ovalis - entry gate to cochlea (inner ear). Theoretically, this should be the best possible transmitted sound without loosing sound quality because of destortion at all.

I wonder...