OPS-Code 5-209.25:

You had a hearing prosthesis fitted in your inner ear.

The ear is a sensory organ that is used to hear and to maintain one’s balance. There are 3 different areas in the ear: the outer ear, middle ear and inner ear.Noise and sounds from the environment reach our ears as sound waves. When the sound waves meet the eardrum, they make it vibrate. These vibrations are transmitted via the ossicles to the cochlea, getting amplified in the process. In the cochlea the sensory cells convert the vibrations to electrical signals. These signals then pass via the auditory nerve to the brain, where they are perceived and processed.The organ of hearing is located in the inner ear. It is also known as the cochlea.

A hearing prosthesis for the inner ear is also known as a cochlear implant. A cochlear implant consists of several parts. An outer part takes in sounds in the form of sound waves. This part is located externally on the scalp behind the ear. Another part converts the sound waves into electrical signals. This part is located below the scalp behind the ear. The internal part is fitted directly into the cochlea in the inner ear. This part receives the electrical signals and passes them on to the auditory nerves.

During surgery, a recess was first drilled into your skull bone behind the ear. The part of the cochlear implant that converts sound waves into electrical signals was placed in this recess. A tunnel was drilled through the skull bone from this cavity to the middle ear. An electrode lead is then inserted into this tunnel to connect the various parts of the hearing prosthesis. An opening was then made in the wall between the middle ear and the inner ear. The internal part of the cochlear implant was then inserted directly into the cochlea in the inner ear through this opening.

You have not completely lost your ability to hear. The surgery was carried out in a way that would preserve your residual hearing ability as much as possible.