Understanding music is a complex process. MED-EL's cochlear implant technology makes it possible for users to perceive and appreciate music.
Since 2006, each channel or pair of electrodes in MED-EL’s cochlear implants has had its own current source. These 12 channels with independent current sources allow each electrode pair to stimulate the cochlea with more flexibility. For instance, several different electrode pairs can stimulate different places in the cochlea at precisely the same time, which is often referred to as simultaneous or parallel stimulation.
We all know how difficult it can be to find a comfortable pair of shoes that fit well. And when it comes to length, human cochleae have a wider range of variation than human feet do. That’s exactly why—preoperatively—it is not only important to find the best fit in terms of electrode array length. But—postoperatively—it
Everyone knows the story of Cinderella—that noble endeavor to find the perfect match for a one-of-a-kind glass slipper. Imagine if the story had a different moral: What if we were all expected to make ourselves fit into this one specific shoe? What if shoes only came in one size and we were expected to somehow
In the first part of this series on cochlear implant sound quality, we looked at electrode arrays. Specifically, we saw how long electrode arrays are necessary for place-pitch match in the mid-to-low frequencies. If an array can’t reach the second turn of the cochlea, it can’t provide natural tonotopic coding for lower frequencies. Yet beyond
The human cochlea has remarkable arrangement. Along two and a half turns, natural frequency response is intricately ordered in a descending logarithmic scale. This tonotopic frequency response along the whole cochlea allows frequency mapping along a clear, logical path—the Greenwood function.1 With the Greenwood function, you can determine the natural tonotopic frequency of any point
