Hugh McDermott
Hugh McDermott
The Bimodal and Binaural Hearing Theme includes research aimed at optimising combined acoustic and electric hearing in all its forms.
Although cochlear implants were used initially as monaural hearing devices for adults with minimal acoustic hearing sensitivity in either ear, their typically high levels of performance have led to a progressive change in the criteria for candidacy. Recently there has been a rapid increase in the number of people with usable acoustic hearing in one or both ears electing to receive an implant. Generally the combination of acoustic hearing and electric stimulation provides substantial advantages to each recipient’s communication ability. For people with little or no acoustic hearing, provision of two cochlear implants – one in each ear – can also be beneficial. Consequently, it is now becoming common for a child or adult with hearing impairment to use simultaneously one or two cochlear implants and/or one or two acoustic hearing aids in various configurations.
The numerous combinations of acoustic and electric stimulation in each ear introduce a range of new research challenges. For example, listening with both ears rather than one normally provides great advantages for communication in noisy conditions and for localising sound sources. In addition, the use of even limited acoustic hearing can provide important benefits, such as enhanced sound quality and improved pitch perception, to recipients of cochlear implants. However, much research is still needed to maximise the potential of these combinations of hearing devices.