Hearing Aid or Cochlear Implant for Your Child?
Permanently improving hearing via DNA editing may not be available just, but there are other options available for your child in paediatric audiology. However, should you choose a hearing aid or cochlear implant?
How Do They Work?
Sound waves pass into the ear, hitting the eardrum, vibrating tiny bones, then onto the many microscopic hairs of the cochlea, which in turn sends those signals to the brain.
If the brain has trouble receiving those signals from the cochlea hairs, your child won’t feel like they have heard the sound.
This is where we can turn up the volume for all sounds entering the ear.
Hearing aids do just that. By increasing all noises before the ear drum, there’s much more for the cochlea hairs to work with and more signals will be passed on to the brain. You’re child has now heard the sounds that you wanted them to.
However, what if that’s still not loud enough for the cochlea to do its job?
This is when a cochlear implant will be needed.
Hearing Aids
Hearing aids can be fitted to a baby as soon as the first few weeks after birth.
A mold of the ear will be taken to which the hearing aid can be fitted, creating a very comfortable device that will enhance all sounds.
This is the same process for children of any age.
Cochlear Implants
If you have been advised that hearing aids aren’t the right option for your child, then a Cochlear Implant will be needed. They can be fitted to infants as young as 6-9 months old.
The outer device will fit over the top of the ear to provide audio for the internal component to send signals to the brain.
This procedure will need to be performed by a surgeon at hospital, but we can provide the initial hearing test to determine whether a Cochlear Implant is needed.
How to Get Started
Your paediatric audiologist will examine your child’s hearing to find out which option is best.
Hearing aids are usually the first step for either solution as they can provide enough sound straight away and prepare your child for a cochlea implant.
If you think that your child may be struggling to hear sounds of any kind, let us know and we’ll guide you through the journey.
Read more about our Paediatric Audiology service, call 0117 901 2526 or fill in our contact form.
