Baha frustration...

[Kencutus]

I think you're right about the hair.  Maybe, you might want to have your hair dresser to cut or shave more hair around that area.  As for your doctor placing the abutment where it is now could be the reason why he did it that way.  He didn't want to put it close to your other surgical site.  Both of my abutments are placed exactly 1/2" behind my ears.

[leapyrtwins]

I'm not a doctor, but the placement looks fine to me.  And I'm not sure the hair is an issue.  If your doc is experienced with BAHA implant surgery, I don't think he/she goofed up.

From what I can tell from the picture, it does look like your skin is a little puffy and close to the abutment.  Although the abutment doesn't stick up much from the skull - about 1/8" - the area around it is usually sunken (what some of us here like to call a "divot").

Have you been back to your doctor?  I'd start with that before doing anything else.

Jan

[lori67]

Looks to me (in my very unprofessional opinion) to be in a good location.  The doctor has to make sure the abutment is in "good" bone, so I'm sure a lot of thought goes into the actual placement and why they may appear to be randomly placed.  Since everyone has a different "good" spot, the placement may vary from one person to another.

As far as hair, I have a whole lot more than that.  I don't have a bald spot at all around my abutment, although I was told I probably would.  It hasn't had any effect on the use of my processor though.  My doctor actually has a hard time finding the abutment when I go for checkups.

As far as the puffiness though, you definitely should have your doctor take a look at it.  I had a little bit of a puffiness problem after getting my processor - I would just have my husband take a picture and I would e-mail it to my doctor and get his opinion on how it looked.  Once I had an infection and a course of antibiotics took care of it and now I have clobetasol cream on hand to put on if it ever gets puffy.  Haven't had to use it in a long time.

Lori

[mellowrama]

ok thanks so much for your feedback!

Meanwhile I will make another follow-up with my doc (he is in OKC 8 hours away and has done over 50 bahas).
I havn't been concerned about where the post is placed, just that it seems to have missed the intentional area that has no hair, and I think the hair is a problem...my hair is really thick and brustely* (word?) it seems to be growing under the post itself.

m

* bristly - 'consisting of or resembling bristle'.

[margen]

M - I feel your frustration.  I had my BAHA surgery on October 1, 2009, and received my BAHA in January, 2010.  There were some complications during surgery and my surgeon had to move my abutment slightly further behind my ear than I think was normal.

I have the same issues with hair growth and puffiness as you are experiencing.  I do use a steroidal cream to keep the swelling down.  I hope this is a temporary solution.  I still can't sleep on the BAHA side, and even sleeping on the other side hurts sometimes. 

I did not have the WOW factor that others describe.  For the frist six weeks I had a lot of feedback, so I had to keep the BAHA volume turned so low that it was ineffective.  The audiologist was able to correct this with the use of the new software that others on this site have mentioned.  I don't notice a huge difference in my hearing, but others can tell when I'm not wearing the device so it must be having some impact. My biggest complaint right now is that I feel slight pain at the site all the time.  I'm getting discouraged to the point that I am beginning to consider having the post removed and just deal with the SSD.

[JerseyGirl2]

I have the same issues with hair growth and puffiness as you are experiencing.  I do use a steroidal cream to keep the swelling down.  I hope this is a temporary solution.  I still can't sleep on the BAHA side, and even sleeping on the other side  I'm getting discouraged to the point that I am beginning to consider having the post removed and just deal with the SSD.

Don't give up yet. Sometimes the improvement is subtle, but it's still an improvement and may get even better over time. Check with your doctor for remedies for the puffiness/infection you may be experiencing.

Catherine (JerseyGirl 2)

[tenai98]

Here is what I do when I think the BAHA isnt working...plug up the good ear....and the wow factor does play a roll...I deff cant hear the difference when the good ear is not plugged...I am missing my demo BAHA that I had for a month....get my own (BP100) on April 12.  Was to get the intenso end of Feb but my audiologist suggest I go for the newer one...
JO

[mellowrama]

I saw my ent (Dr. Baker) and he confirmed that the location of it is a little different due to the translab surgery. 
He also gave me a steroid cream for the post area - and mentioned the puffy sore area is the head muscle and not anything can be done about it.  I also having adhesions at the bottom area.

So, it is ongoing a bit sore, I assume this will get better over time.
Yes, I have a huge divot, but just to the top of it is my head muscle...and hair.  My doc thinks (and so does my mom a hairdresser) that it will be less irritating if I let the hair grow,  as the vibrations of the BAHA cause friction which in turn hits the bristle-like hair and then the scalp.

Margen- I'm with you on this - when I wear the BAHA it doesn't seem to help much but I do notice it when I don't wear it.  And, the incision for the BAHA,etc causes me more pain issues than the translab surgery ever did!  This is what bothers me most - having the post and irritation on that side of my head. BTW - my doc has done over 50 of these.  In my case - I've found the surgery/recovery very bothersome.

Now I'm sending it in for warranty repair - it is not working (no battery holds it power), the seal is damaged from my learning curve putting it on...and I've asked about the firmward update as perhaps that will make a hearing difference.