Unilateral Hearing Loss

[margaret]

My son has a unilateral hearing loss (right side) from birth.  He is 25 years old.  Would he be a candidate for a cochlear implant?  I haven't found many articles on unilateral hearing loss regarding implants.   

[Joef]

so the other ear is good? with one good ear , insurance companys are not going to pay it... the only people I've seen with it are totally deaf.
and of course you need a cochlear on the bad side too! if not then a BAHA (bone anchored hearing aid) or simuliar device will be your only choice...

u might want to check out http://www.alldeaf.com/ and http://www.baha-users-support.com/cgi-bin/2bb/2bb.cgi

[leapyrtwins]

Margaret -

from what I understand, cochlears are for those totally deaf, but BAHAs (very similar) are for those with unilateral deafness - at least that's how my neurotologist explained it to me if I heard him correctly.

Your best bet might be to consult with a neurotologist or another doctor who does BAHAs.  He/she could formally request coverage from your son's insurance company.  If you tell us where you are located, someone should be able to recommend a good doctor.

Jan

[lori67]

Hi Margaret.

As fas as I know, cochlear implants are only for those that are deaf in both ears, like Jan mentioned.

There are different types of hearing aids for different types of hearing loss, so if you don't already know the type of loss he has, you may want to check that out with an ENT.  They should be able to steer you in the right direction for which type of device would be best for him.

Technology for these things seems to be improving pretty rapidly, so I would guess there is something out there that will help!
Good luck to you and your son!
Lori

[ChrisB]

Ditto what the others have said - not for single-sided deafness.  Another alternative that's non-invasive is the TransEar from Ear Technology, in Tennessee.  It's far less expensive than a BAHA, and requires no drilling into the skull.

Chris

[marg]

Hi Margaret,
    I have a TransEar and have  had one for about 2 months.  It is a type of hearing aid which picks up sounds from the deaf side and transfers it by way of bone conduction to the nerve on the hearing side.  It looks like a regular hearing aid.... so no drilling and it is only in the deaf ear - so the hearing ear is clear to hear normally.  I really appreciate having mine - it helps enough that it makes my job (as a 2nd grade teacher) much easier.   

     You might want to check it out.  You can start your search on this forum by going to the 'home' menu and putting  TransEar  in the search box.

Margaret (marg)