NIH recommends cochlear implants to restore hearing

[Reuters]

WASHINGTON (Reuter) - Cochlear implants should be used more
widely to restore sound for children and adults with severe
hearing loss, a top-level medical panel recommended Wednesday.
Cochlear implants are available to adults who are profoundly
deaf and who cannot understand speech even with the most
powerful hearing aids. They are also used in children age two
and up, and research has shown their oral communication skills
improve.
The independent panel of 14 experts convened by the National
Institutes of Health after reviewing the research recommended
that the devices be made more widely available.
The implant does not restore normal hearing but it can help
people who are totally deaf or nearly totally deaf understand
speech and perceive some sounds.
The panel concluded that the implants can also benefit
people who have lost much but not all of their hearing, and who
do not get much help from hearing aids. In fact, some profoundly
deaf people with cochlear implants perceive more sound that less
severely deaf people with hearing aids.
The experts estimated that about one million people in the
United States alone could benefit from broader use of the
device. About 12,000 people around the world already have the
implant.
The device is a sophisticated electronic instrument with a
transmitter and other components, some worn externally and some
surgically placed within and behind the ear.
It does not amplify sound, like a conventional hearing aid,
but sorts out useful sounds and turns them into electrical
impulses.
The scientific panel did not tackle the cultural debate
about cochlear implants in children. That emotional debate has
involved questions about whether deafness is a deficiency or a
different culture that has a valid mode of communication of its
own, American Sign Language.