For health professionals

If you feel your patient may potentially benefit from a cochlear or BAHA implant the following criteria can be considered as a general guide.

On this page:

• Cochlear implant referral guide
  
• BAHA referral guide
  
• Download printable referral form

Please note:

The initial assessment process is not a commitment from either the patient or our implant team to proceed. Rather it is an information gathering exercise for all involved.

Cochlear Implant referral guide for health professionals

People with air-conduction pure tone thresholds in the dark blue area can be referred for assessment for a cochlear implant.

If you feel your patient may potentially benefit from a cochlear implant (full array or Hybrid) the following criteria can be considered as a general guide:

• They must have a moderate to profound bilateral sensori-neural hearing loss. In Table 1 patients whose Pure Tone Audiograms fall within the dark blue area may be candidates for implantation. Generally those with good low frequency thresholds may be considered for a hybrid device
• They should gain little or no benefit from conventional hearing aids.
• Preferably they should have good verbal communication skills. Whilst this is not mandatory, such recipients can expect better outcomes.
• The inner ear must be reasonably well-formed and the cochlear nerve needs to be functioning. In cases where this is unclear, we are usually able to make a reasonable assessment of nerve function prior to cochlear implantation.
• They must be medically suitable to undergo a general anaesthetic and a 2 to 3 hour operation.
• Age is not a precluding factor but cognitive function needs to be such that they have the ability to learn new skills.
• They and their family need to have realistic expectations.

BAHA referral guide for health professionals

People may be referred for assessment as to the benefit obtainable from a BAHA.who have:

1. Single sided profound sensori-neural hearing loss
2. Middle ear (conductive) hearing loss that is not suitable for surgical repair and where hearing aids are not a satisfactory option. There must be a conductive element of at least 30dB and bone conduction thresholds must be within the light blue area of Table 2.