Several hearing devices have been shown to benefit individuals with<unk> . Contralateral Routing of Signals (CROS) hearing aids are hearing aids that take sound from the ear with poorer hearing and transmit to the ear with better hearing. They consist of a microphone placed near the impaired ear and an amplifier (hearing aid) near the normal ear. The two units are connected either by a wire behind the neck or by wireless transmission. The aid appears as two behind-the-ear hearing aids and is sometimes incorporated into eyeglasses. Bone Anchored Hearing Aids (BAHAs) are bone conduction devices that are surgically implanted into the mastoid bone, with an abutment protruding through the skin. The external hearing aid clicks onto the abutment and uses bone conduction to transmit sound to the cochlea of the normal hearing ear. The external component can also be attached to a headband or softband and used as a non-surgical device. The BONEBRIDGE bone conduction implant is surgically implanted into the mastoid bone completely underneath the skin. The audio processor is worn externally and held in place by magnets. It sends sound as electrical signals through the skin to the implant. The implant then sends sound vibrations to the cochlea of the normal hearing ear through the skull via bone conduction. The ADHEAR bone conduction system is a non-surgical device that sticks to the skin behind the ear. It vibrates to send sound vibrations through the skin and the skull bone to the cochlea of the normal hearing ear. The SoundBite intraoral bone conduction system used bone conduction via the teeth. One component resembled a conventional behind-the-ear hearing aid that wirelessly connects to a second component worn in the mouth that resembles a conventional dental appliance. The device was discontinued in 2015 and is no longer available. A cochlear implant can also be used to treat<unk>  in many countries. The device is surgically implanted in the cochlea of non-hearing ear, with a sound processor worn externally. Using electrical stimulation of the cochlea, sound is sent to the hearing nerve and onto the brain. Evaluation According to Snapp 2019, CROS technology solutions provide a noninvasive, aesthetically appealing, low-cost option for individuals with single sided deafness (SSD). The primary benefits of a CROS hearing devices are improved sound awareness from the impaired side and better hearing in noise when speech is located on the impaired side. However, CROS solutions do not provide restoration of binaural hearing and cannot improve tasks requiring binaural input, such as localization. One study of the BAHA system showed a benefit depending on the patient's transcranial attenuation. Another study showed that sound localization was not improved, but the effect of the head shadow was reduced. The BAHA system has been shown to have higher patient satisfaction and greater perceived benefit by users than the CROS system. The BONEBRIDGE system has been shown to provide good hearing outcomes, and patients also reported high subjective benefit. The device has been shown to decrease the head shadow effect. Sprinzl et al (2016) also found that the BONEBRIDGE system had a lower complication rate when compared to other implanted bone conduction devices. Studies of the ADHEAR system have shown that patients report higher comfort satisfaction and longer daily wearing times compared to the BAHA system with a headband or softband, due to the lack of pressure on the skin. Better outcomes compared to CROS hearing aids have also been reported. Studies on the SoundBite system showed it to have strong hearing benefit and high patient satisfaction, particularly due to its non-surgical design. Some users reported acoustic feedback from the device. Cochlear implants (CIs) have been shown to benefit patients with<unk>  in terms of tinnitus reduction, localization, speech understanding, and quality of life (QoL). The increased ability to locate sounds is explained by the fact that, unlike with the other treatments available, treating<unk>  with a cochlear implant results in both cochleae being stimulated, which helps the brain to better decipher the location of the sound. However, patients may still have difficulties at frontal locations and on the CI side.
Unilateral hearing loss
Sensorineural hearing loss
Conductive hearing loss
Spatial hearing loss
Prelingual deafness
Bilateral vestibulopathy
Dichoptic presentation
Cortical deafness