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pros and cons of going bilateral vs unilateral


shay's_mom

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My daughter was implanted with a cochlear in her right ear in 2006, at the age of 6.5, note she is 15 and they are questioning? The audiologist told us that she had seen more down falls from the implants that were done this many years apart. Can anyone help with understanding pros and cons? The ENT doctor said she is old enough to take part in this decision, however I need her to be presented with all three facts. She n now has the Rondo from Med-el.

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Shay"s_mom

Welcome to hearpeers. Each persons brain is very different. How they respond to implants can be very different as well. You never know how a person is going to respond. It could be better than you have expected or it might not.

I don't feel I should tell you what you need to do. I think that the child at that age should be involved in the decision making process but as you said, it should be explained in great detail so the family can make an informed decision. Your doctor and audiologist know your daughters health and hearing history the best. You can also get a second opinion as well. One way to look at it is that if you at least try, you have a 50% chance of getting use out of that ear. If you don't try, you still have the same guaranteed. This probably didn't he a whole lot as I know this can be a very difficult decision especially when it is your child.

We will be here to support and encourage you in whatever your family decides.

Adam

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Shay's mum,

I am an ENT doctor with special interest in audiology.

At first, pro's: bilateral hearing - you get hololocation: the ability to find out where the sound is coming from; also you get better speech discrimination - or putting you in the perspective: how do you hear with one ear? ;)

But - the most important thing is that your child has to decide: now, for 10 years or never but it has to be her decision. You have given her the most precious gift - hearing and the ability to participate in everyday life. This was essential, quality will need to be decided only and solely by herself.

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Thank you Adam - I just supported your opinion as you had to make that decision for yourself. You better know what is the difference and what is the real impact on individual's life taking into account all additional effort about surgery and hearing rehabilitation which should be taken seriously.

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Yes it should Ivana. My thought was that, I already had one ci surgery, what's the big deal in having 2. I knew it would not make my hearing any worse. I plenty to gain, not much if anything to lose. So glad I made the decision.

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Glad that you mentioned CI surgery, otherwise you could be a voodoo doll :D

How many times you went that under knife? ;)

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Ivana, my last surgery in Dec. 2014 was my 37th

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I have asked you on purpose because it's respective number which should be respected. If anyone can say about making decisions - you can. ;)

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Thank you both for the information. The doctor that mentioned it, is her new ent doc. We moved from VA to NC, so they have only seen her that one time. We go back in August to find out if she is a candidate for her left ear. In 2006, in VA she was not. I have talked with her, one day she says she wants 2 ears, then the next she says no it will be too loud. Due to her first implanting happening so late compared to most children born deaf, she will still have to communicate back in sign language. My concern is, if she is a candidate, if Shay decides not that she may wish she had when she is older. Again thank you. I shall let you know what the outcome is.

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Please do.

This fluctuation within her decision matrix urge to let her to decide - so she does not say once that it wasn't her wish.

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It can be a tough position to be in for sure. Including the child in the decision can be a challenge, especially when you consider the age.

I know a number of parents that decided to get the implant for their younger child. As the child gets older, they have the choice to wear the processor or not.

Since you don't know which way to go, this way gives them the option of deciding for themselves when they can make a more manure decision. Downside is if you wait until they get older, the window for developing speech, pretty much closes.

Not saying this is right or wrong, just something to think about.

Whatever decision you make, is the RIGHT decision. Don't let anybody tell you different.

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  • 1 month later...

My daughter was implanted with a cochlear in her right ear in 2006, at the age of 6.5, note she is 15 and they are questioning? The audiologist told us that she had seen more down falls from the implants that were done this many years apart. Can anyone help with understanding pros and cons? The ENT doctor said she is old enough to take part in this decision, however I need her to be presented with all three facts. She n now has the Rondo from Med-el.

 

I opted for bilateral taking the advice from my audiologist in Toronto at the Hearing Solutions clinic. He pointed out many things to support his advice. The main thing was the patients who have done bilateral cochlear impact tends to have a good rate of speech recognition in the presence of noise. Then the sound localization ability using bilateral cochlear implants is more accurate than the other. Considering these two pros of bilateral, I opted for bilateral.

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Hello Pitzer23,

There is no doubt that bilateral implantation is better, but here was issue something - a child's right to decide whether she wish to go through another implantation or not. She has right to decide for herself.

By the way, welcome to the forum!

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Another option is to go bilateral

If your child decides to wear both processors, one or none, they can do it.

This is a very sensitive topic as you are dealing with children so people have very strong opinions for and against getting 2 or for that matter 1 implant.

There are very good reasons why you should get one or both as early as possible. If you know you are definitely going to get one, why not get the other while you are already dealing with insurance and other preparations. Not to mention 1 elation as opposed to 2 recoveries.

It is a very difficult decision for a parent to have to make. Our son was 9 months old when he had to have some surgery that was not elective. I can understand the apprehension having your child in thatosition.

Regardless of what you decide, your decision will be the right one, period. It is good to seek advice from other folks but ultimately it is your call and you have to feel comfortable with that decision.

We will be near to support you in whatever you decide.

adam

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