Who can get a cochlear implant?
Adults and children with severe and profound hearing loss in even one ear. Generally, cochlear implant candidates struggle despite well fit hearing aids. A key hint that it is time to consider a cochlear implant is when the telephone becomes difficult in the affected ear. Some CI candidate do quite well in quiet but find any amount of background noise to make it impossible to hear. For children, speech and language skills will not grow with even the most powerful hearing aids. Early intervention for children is crucial––months matter in terms of speech and language development.
