Cochlear Implants

Cochlear Implants

Evaluation
Surgery
Follow-Up

Surgery

Before your surgery, you will meet with an anesthesiologist and hospital admitting personnel and complete any necessary tests. Tours of the hospital also can be arranged. Surgery usually is performed the following day.

Patients generally remain in the hospital overnight and return home the day after surgery.

Implant surgery is performed under general anesthesia and takes about three hours. During the operation, a surgeon will anchor a receiver-stimulator device in the temporal bone in the skull and insert what is called an "electrode array" into the cochlea, the small snail-shaped structure in the inner ear that contains the hearing organ.

First, an incision is made behind the ear to expose the temporal bone. The surgeon then positions the implant component against the bone. A hole is made in the temporal bone with a microscopic drill, allowing the surgeon access to the cochlea. A small hole is made in the wall of the cochlea and the electrode array is gently guided into the cochlea.

The internal receiver is secured in place on the skull bone with sutures and the incision is closed. A sterile dressing is placed on the incision.

To qualify for a cochlear implant, patients must meet the following criteria:

• Overall good health
• Severe hearing loss in both ears
• Limited benefit from conventional hearing aids determined by a trial period, when appropriate, of about three months
• Psychological and emotional stability
• Realistic expectations of the implant
• No ear conditions or other medical conditions that would interfere with surgery
• Ability to participate fully in a follow-up program

• Overall good health
• Severe hearing loss in both ears
• Limited benefit from conventional hearing aids
• Realistic expectations of the cochlear implant
• No ear conditions or other medical conditions that would interfere with surgery
• Family commitment to comply with all evaluations before and after surgery
• Enrollment in a post-operative rehabilitative and educational program that supports the use of cochlear implants and the development of hearing skills

Reviewed by health care specialists at UCSF Medical Center.
Last updated July 11, 2007