Cochlear Implants
by Michi Diller, AuD

How Cochlear Implant Care is Changing

February 12, 2024
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The number of cochlear implant (CI) candidates continues to grow due to expanding indications and an aging population. However, despite all the advancements in this field, the protocol and care model for CI patients hasn’t changed much since cochlear implants were first approved in the 1980s.(1,2)

We have been inspired by the many industry leaders who have spoken about the need for a change to the care model. As the industry leader, it is our duty to support these changes with evidence-based recommendations about how to best care for adult CI recipients. We strive to always ensure our recommendations are consistent with best practices in the industry.

To that end, we are proud to introduce our new Adult Cochlear Implant Clinical Protocol Guidance documents. Improvements include:

  • An increased focus on patient-centered care rather than time-based recommendations – in other words, providing care centered on patient need rather than the calendar
  • Data-driven recommendations and CI programming guidance
  • Suggestions on how our ground-breaking Cochlear Connected Care technologies, such as SmartNav or Remote Care, can be incorporated into the overall care model
  • Resources and tools that can be used to support patients toward more self-directed care at each stage, in accordance with patient-centered care principles
  • Guidance on performance milestones and when patients may “graduate” to maintenance care

These new documents are designed for all clinicians, no matter your skill level. If you are new to working with cochlear implants, you will find guidance on best practices for caring for your patients. If you have been working with CI patients for years, you will find new suggestions and support for incorporating new technologies.

We invite you to visit our website where you will find the new Adult CI Care Model Protocol, along with all the supporting guidance and resources at your fingertips. We recommend bookmarking this site – these documents will be updated regularly as recommendations evolve and new technologies become available.

The Adult CI Care Model Protocol can also be found here:

FUN2802-CI-Adult-Sample-Clinical-ProtocolDownload

We are proud to support you in providing the highest level of care to your patients, and we continue to be inspired by all you do.  

1. Nassiri AM, Sorkin DL, Carlson M. (2022) Current estimates of cochlear implant utilization in the United States. Otology & Neurotology, 43(5):p e558-e562.

2. Grisel J, Miller, S, Schafer EC. (2022) A novel performance-based paradigm of care for cochlear implant follow-up. Laryngoscope, 132 Suppl 1:S1-S10.

Related Posts
remote check

FDA expedites approval of Cochlear’s Remote Check solution for cochlear implants

April 7, 2020

Amid COVID-19 pandemic, remote healthcare solutions are a priority now more than ever

Centennial, Colo. (April 7, 2020) — Cochlear Limited (ASX: COH), the global leader in implantable hearing solutions, obtained U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval on April 2 for its Remote Check solution. This approval is the first step in commercializing the product offering, which is anticipated by the end of 2020. Cochlear will immediately begin a controlled market release of Remote Check in the U.S. and Canada by partnering with hearing healthcare providers and hospitals to quickly reach those most in need of audiological care during the COVID-19 pandemic, which supports social distancing by providing an alternative to in-person appointments.

Remote Check is designed to be a convenient, at-home testing tool that allows Cochlear recipients with a Cochlear™ Nucleus® 7 Sound Processor to complete a series of hearing tests from their compatible iOS device using the Nucleus Smart App.* Results are then sent remotely to the recipient’s clinic for review by their clinician. The clinician can review the results by logging into their myCochlear Clinic professional portal, where they can access a comprehensive overview of their patient’s hearing health. Remote Check is designed to provide a snapshot of a patient’s hearing health so a clinician can quickly determine whether a patient is progressing well, or whether further clinical intervention is required.**

“The FDA’s expedited approval of our Remote Check offering during the COVID-19 crisis underscores that at-home hearing healthcare support needs to be prioritized, more accessible and convenient for patients now more than ever,” said Patricia Trautwein, Au.D., Vice President, Marketing & Product Management, Cochlear Americas. “When elective surgeries become available again after the COVID-19 crisis, clinicians are going to see a wave of patients coming in to seek hearing implant treatment. Having a solution like Remote Check will help clinicians prioritize their case load, so they can reduce unnecessary visits for patients progressing well, spend more quality time with patients who have complex needs, and help more patients seeking initial cochlear implant candidacy assessment.”

For the Cochlear recipient, Remote Check is designed to reduce unnecessary travel burdens to get into their clinic, provide immediate hearing and patient data to their clinician for troubleshooting requests, and provides a convenient, time-saving option for care that does not require travel to the clinic. Using this technology, clinicians will not only be able to provide a more convenient avenue of care, but they can also free up more appointment times to manage the anticipated growth in the hearing implant market.

“Our clinic is eager to provide our patients with more remote servicing opportunities, and we are excited to start using Cochlear’s Remote Check offering,” said Regina Presley, Au.D., FAAA, CCC-A, Senior Cochlear Implant Audiologist, Presbyterian Board of Governors Cochlear Implant Center of Excellence, Greater Baltimore Medical Center. “Many patients travel long distances for in-clinic care, need a caregiver to help get to their appointments, have competing school, personal and professional priorities, so if we can provide at-home service options, we believe they will have a more positive healthcare experience overall. Every patient deserves timely, quality service to get the most from their hearing devices. Remote Check will ensure that patients receive the best care no matter where life and times like this take us.”

A clinician can choose to assign any of the following activities for their patient to complete as part of their Remote Check:

  1. Photographing the implant site and the area behind the ear.
  2. Completing questionnaires to gather information about general health and hearing.
  3. Taking an audiogram test to precisely measure the softest levels heard across a range of frequencies.
  4. Taking a listening-in-noise test to objectively assess hearing ability by identifying three-digit numbers presented in varying levels of background noise.
  5. Impedance Check to assess the performance of the implant.

The full suite of Remote Check activities for patients is designed to be completed in as little as 15 minutes, although it may take longer for some patients and children.1 Remote Check is designed so that it can be completed at a patient’s own pace. Early pilots of Remote Check in the United Kingdom and New Zealand affirm the need for the service with 87 percent of users stating they were likely to use Remote Check again.2

“Over the last decade, Cochlear has been heavily focused on expanding and improving our digital and remote care services. We’ve brought to market first-of-its-kind solutions, like Remote Check, remote programming, myCochlear Clinic, Cochlear Link and SignHEAR, to help improve clinic efficiency, support a range of clinical practice preferences and provide the best hearing experience for our recipients,” said Tony Manna, President, Cochlear Americas. “During unprecedented times like we’re experiencing right now, we’re proud Cochlear is the leader in providing innovative solutions that allow our clinic partners to continue treating their patients without the need for an in-person appointment, ultimately ensuring our recipients continue to hear and stay connected.”

About Cochlear Limited (ASX: COH)

Cochlear is the global leader in implantable hearing solutions. The company has a global workforce of more than 4,000 people and invests more than AUD$180 million each year in research and development. Products include cochlear implants, bone conduction implants and acoustic implants, which healthcare professionals use to treat a range of moderate to profound types of hearing loss.

Since 1981, Cochlear has provided more than 600,000 implantable devices, helping people of all ages, in more than 180 countries, to hear.

www.cochlear.com/us

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References

1. Based on internal Cochlear data. Some users may take longer than 15 minutes and 10 minutes, respectively. Data on file.

2. Based on internal Cochlear data. “Remote Check Pilot Evaluation UK & NZ.” Data on file.

* To use Remote Check, a patient requires: latest version of the Nucleus Smart App (Remote Check is part of this App) running on a compatible Apple device (iPhone or iPod Touch); Nucleus 7 Sound Processors with implant models: CI24RE, CI512, CI513, CI522, CI532, CI612, CI622 and CI632; compatible firmware on the Nucleus 7 Sound Processor (4.1.3.3 or later). A clinician requires access to Cochlear’s secure web-based myCochlear.com Professional Portal to access and review patient results. The recommended browser for accessing the Professional Portal is Google Chrome. A clinician also requires Custom Sound 5.1 or later software to upgrade the patient’s firmware to enable access to Remote Check. For sound processor and app compatibility information, visit www.cochlear.com/compatibility.

** Remote Check does not replace clinical care and does not involve remote programming of the sound processor.

Apple, iPhone and iPod touch are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. 

ForwardFocus graphic

The Nearby Functionality on the Nucleus® Smart App helps patients find their missing sound processor(s)

November 13, 2018

Nucleus 7

The Nearby functionality on the Nucleus® Smart App is part of the new Nucleus 7 expanded features. The Nearby functionality helps recipients and parents to locate a paired Nucleus 7 Sound Processor(s) within the Find my Sound Processor feature of the Nucleus Smart App.

The Nearby functionality works as a proximity locator, to help recipients and parents locate a missing sound processor with even greater accuracy. This new feature displays how close the mobile device is to a switched-on sound processor. The higher the green bar goes, the closer they are to the sound processor.

In order to use the Nearby functionality on the Nucleus Smart App, the sound processor must be switched-on and paired with a compatible smartphone via Bluetooth®. The sound processor and smartphone device must be within Bluetooth range for the Nearby functionality to work properly.Nearby feature

For a unilateral recipient, a single signal strength bar is shown in the middle of the screen with a green indicator that fills up the bar as the sound processor comes within close range of the mobile device. A fully filled green bar indicates the sound processor is very close to the mobile device, while a close to empty strength bar indicates that the user needs to move around the location with their mobile device.

For a bilateral recipient, the app shows a blue strength bar for the left sound processor and a pink strength bar for the right sound processor with the fill color indicating the proximity between the respective sound processor and the mobile device.

When a sound processor is disconnected or not within Bluetooth range (10 meters), the signal strength bar is grayed out and the app indicates with an “Out of range” message. Either the user needs to move around to come into range or they might need to move to “Map” mode of Find my Sound Processor.

Get more information on the Nucleus 7 Expanded Features.

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The Bluetooth® word mark and logos are registered trademarks owned by Bluetooth SIG, Inc., and any use of such marks by Cochlear Limited is under license.
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©Cochlear Limited 2024. All rights reserved. ACE, Advance Off-Stylet, AOS, Ardium, AutoNRT, Autosensitivity, Baha, Baha SoftWear, BCDrive, Beam, Bring Back the Beat, Button, Carina, Cochlear, 科利耳, コクレア, 코클리어, Cochlear SoftWear, Contour, コントゥア, Contour Advance, Custom Sound, DermaLock, Freedom, Hear now. And always, Hugfit, Human Design, Hybrid, Invisible Hearing, Kanso, LowPro, MET, MP3000, myCochlear, mySmartSound, NRT, Nucleus, Osia, Outcome Focused Fitting, Off-Stylet, Piezo Power, Profile, Slimline, SmartSound, Softip, SoundArc, True Wireless, the elliptical logo, Vistafix, Whisper, WindShield and Xidium are either trademarks or registered trademarks of the Cochlear group of companies. The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

 

This material is intended for health professionals. If you are a consumer, please seek advice from your health professional about treatments for hearing loss. Outcomes may vary, and your health professional will advise you about the factors which could affect your outcome. Always read the instructions for use. Not all products are available in all countries. Please contact your local Cochlear representative for product information.

 

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