A Bone Anchored Hearing Aid is a hearing device that relies on direct bone conduction to transmit sound. This surgically implanted device bypasses the auditory canal and middle ear, utilizing bones as a pathway for sound to reach the middle ear. It’s an alternative for people with chronic ear infections, congenital external auditory canal atresia and single-sided deafness. These patients usually do not benefit from conventional hearing aids.
How Does a Bone Anchored Hearing Aid Work?
In a person with normal hearing, sound enters the external ear and travels down the ear canal through the middle ear to the cochlea, or inner ear. This process is called air conduction. For individuals with certain types of hearing loss, sound is unable to travel down these pathways. The Bone Anchored Hearing Aid takes advantage of the bones’ natural conductive abilities by sending sound vibrations directly to your inner ear, bypassing the auditory canal and middle ear completely.
The device is made up of three components: a titanium implant, an external abutment and a sound processor. Once the surgical implant is in place, it gradually fuses with the skull bone over a period of several months in a process known as osseointegration. The unit is then ready to be fit and programmed. The sound processor transmits vibrations through the external abutment to the implant, where vibrations in the skull and inner ear stimulate the nerve fibers responsible for hearing.
Bone Anchored Hearing Aids are a safe and effective FDA-approved treatment alternative that enables many hearing-impaired individuals to communicate more effectively. It has been available in the U.S. since 1977.
Candidates for these devices are typically patients with conductive and mixed hearing losses, or those with unilateral (single-sided) hearing loss.
Cochlear BAHA Implants
The Cochlear Baha® 5 Power and Baha® 5 SuperPower Sound Processors are amazingly smart and incredibly powerful bone anchored hearing aids. They use the most advanced technology to help you hear better in any situation. Both devices are made for iPhone, wirelessly connecting to iPhones, iPads® and iPods®.
The Baha 5 Power features a volume rocker for easy volume control as well as a long battery life of 160 hours. The device comes in a range of colors so you can choose the option that best fits your needs.
The Baha 5 SuperPower is the industry’s first and only head-worn super power solution for those with hearing loss. This device is idea for those who struggle to understand conversations, even with a powerful hearing aid.
Oticon Ponto Implants
Oticon’s Ponto 3, Ponto 3 Power and Ponto 3 SuperPower provide premium sound quality and a greater volume range, so loud sounds remain loud but not distorted and softer sounds are audible. The unique UltraDrive™ technology within these devices helps reduce the risk of feedback while the FreeFocus directional system provides 15 percent better speech understanding in the majority of situations.
All of the Ponto 3 devices can be used with Oticon Medical Streamer and ConnectLine App on both Apple and android devices.
Call Advanced Hearing Solutions at (858) 312-1327 for more information or to schedule an appointment.