Could fully implantable hearing devices be on the horizon?

1 February 2010

Millions of people today benefit from hearing aids and cochlear implants. Unfortunately, however, these devices can easily fall off during movement and are damaged by water. Problems often occur with the devices during sport, swimming and even showers. This inevitably causes certain lifestyle limitations.

One solution would be to have a fully implantable hearing device that can be placed under the skin, entirely out of harm’s way. Could such a solution soon be available?

Recent advances in technology have made it possible to implant a specially developed microphone under the skin. This can be programmed to enhance useful sounds around a person, and to reduce unwanted background body noises that sound much louder when a microphone is inside a person, eg chewing food.

It is also now possible to implant a battery under the skin, which offers typical usage times of up to 35 hours. The battery can be recharged in less than an hour, and this can be undertaken whilst working, driving, or enjoying music.

These two advances mean that a fully implantable hearing device could soon become a reality.

This technology has been developed by Otologics, www.otologics.com, an American middle ear implant company. Their fully implantable middle ear device has now successfully passed through European clinical trials, has been awarded a CE Mark and will be made available in the UK later this year for certain types of hearing loss.

Since September 2009, Cochlear, www.cochlear.com, has been partnering Otologics and is hoping to apply such technology to cochlear implants in an effort to also develop totally implantable versions.

Due to these exciting advances, in the future it may be possible to tailor-make fully implantable hearing devices for each individual depending upon their type and degree of deafness. These devices would neither be visible, nor impinge in any way on users’ lifestyle choices. The devices could be based on a user’s particular needs and could be reprogrammed and adapted from outside (without any further surgery) as their hearing needs change.

Only time will tell whether such devices will become a reality, but at this stage the good news is that such potential developments do look to be within our reach.