Hybrid hearing aid/cochlear implant 

Electric Acoustic Stimulation is a hybrid treatment solution for individuals who have some hearing left in the low frequencies but who cannot hear all of the higher frequency sounds.

The EAS-implant is a combination of a hearing aid that acoustically amplifies low frequencies and a cochlear implant that electrically stimulates the higher frequencies. This is the solution for those who hear too well to receive a conventional cochlear implant, but who cannot use a conventional hearing aid.

“The processor is actually two processors in one, with one processing the electrical impulses and the other processing the acoustical impulses. The device is slightly larger than a conventional CI, but similar in its operation," stated Helge Rask-Andersen, professor at the Uppsala University Hospital in Upsala, Sweden.

Rask-Andersen performed the first Scandinavian EAS implantation together with Wolf-Dieter Baugarten, a surgeon from Austria, where the new device and procedure were developed.

So far, EAS implants are made by few manufacturers. If you think you may be a candidate for EAS treatment you should contact your hearing health specialist.

Source: Auris