This system will be available in August in Singapore.

 

 

Implantable hearing solutions company Cochlear has launched the Cochlear Nucleus Nexa System, the world’s first and only smart cochlear implant system. The system, which is only available in Singapore in August, is powered by the new state-of-the-art chipset – the first update to any implant’s internal chipset across the cochlear implant industry in almost 20 years.

The new chipset utilises advanced processing, upgradeable firmware and onboard memory to drive the ‘smarts’ of the system and allows the implant to do many things that conventional cochlear implants are simply unable to do. Jan Janssen, chief technology officer at Cochlear, likens the Nucleus Nexa implant to a smartphone for hearing: “This is the first cochlear implant in the world with its own firmware, meaning users can upgrade to new features and innovations throughout their lifetime. Just like a smartphone receives a firmware update, now people with a cochlear implant can stay connected to the latest technology updates seamlessly today and well into the future.”

The Nucleus Nexa System is the also the first implant with built-in memory, allowing the personalised hearing settings (MAPs) of the user to be securely stored directly in his or her Nexa implant. This ensures users can seamlessly transfer their settings to a new Nucleus Nexa sound processor if their current one is lost or damaged.

Explained Janssen: “Previously, if a user misplaced or damaged their sound processor, they would need to visit a clinic to obtain a replacement sound processor. This replacement device would need to be programmed with the user’s personalised hearing settings in the clinic by a cochlear implant professional, taking valuable time from both the professional and the user. With the brand-new ‘Smart Sync’ feature, the user simply needs to pick-up or receive a “blank” Nexa sound processor and the personalised settings are automatically copied to the replacement sound processor allowing a person to hear with their cochlear implant again in a matter of seconds.”

To make hearing easier, the Nucleus Nexa System intuitively responds to changing needs throughout each day. It can automatically adjust listening settings to help people hear more clearly. The Nexa implant also features a new gold coil and new RF link technology with dynamic power management. This facilitates more efficient power and data transfer between the sound processor and the implant, and automatically maximises battery life for each user. The costing of the implant in Singapore is currently unavailable as of presstime.

According to Cochlear, its implants are a treatment for people of any age with severe to profound hearing loss when hearing aids are no longer enough or no longer provide enough clarity of sound. It added: “Individuals with hearing loss must having their hearing tested and be assessed by an Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) specialist to receive a cochlear implant.”

The company added that the World Health Organization estimates that there are over 60 million people worldwide who experience severe or higher hearing loss, yet fewer than 5 percent of the people that could benefit from an implantable hearing solution have received one.