I have SSD (single sided deafness) as a result of contracting meningitis at the age of two; this had the effect of fusing my audio nerve on my right side rendering it incapable of passing any sound signals at all. That was 42 years ago, I’d had tests and seen consultants about ten years ago to no avail – just no solutions available.
Up until I received my BAHA I had struggled in all sorts of social situations. There isn’t always an opportunity to point out your SSD when you meet new people – say at a party, a football match or a business meeting – so you struggle on – aware that you probably missed something said to you, knowing that you probably blanked someone unintentionally and knowing that you are probably giving people the idea that you are being unfriendly. That’s not to mention the reluctance to mark yourself out as having a disability when applying for a new job – not that as a disability it compares with what a lot of less fortunate soles have to endure – but nevertheless its an issue for those who suffer.
I first learnt about the BAHA system from an article in the Daily Mail and couldn’t believe what I was reading. That night I just couldn’t get it out of my mind, and the next day when I woke up it was the first thing I thought about – and I felt just a bit excited that at last I could get help.
I made an appointment to see my GP. He hadn’t heard of the BAHA and was interested in the newspaper article and some information I’d printed off from the internet. He had no hesitation in referring me to see a consultant. Using medical insurance I was able to see the consultant the next week – rather than wait 6 months on a waiting list.
I was sent for tests in the hospital audio lab, where my bone conduction was tested. This proved that my bone could conduct enough sound from my deaf right hand side to my good left. The test included a word recognition test, where different words were played at different volumes on an audio system with my good ear completely bunged up – and a BAHA mounted on a head band pressed against my skull. I was amazed – I even resolved some sounds at low volumes that my wife could not resolve – and she has normal hearing.
These tests proved that BAHA was viable for me. Having seen the consultant again I was added to the waiting list for the operation. Even though my private medical insurance paid for the tests – the insurance company decided they wouldn’t pay for the operation or device!
Seven months later I had the operation – under local anaesthetic. The operation was no problem, a bit uncomfortable lying for 40 minutes with head turned to one side – so a bit of a stiff neck after – but hardly any sensation of pain. A day later the numbness had receded and mild pain set in – nothing to be bothered about though and no need for strong pain killers at all. Quite a lot of hair was shaved off for the operation – bit too much I think – I had the appearance of having had some serious surgery – but of course I’d only had fairly superficial work – hardly more than a bit of extreme body piercing I thought. Anyway – the hair soon grew back.
I received the BAHA about 15 weeks later. I’ll never forget that day when I was in the audio lab at the hospital. As soon as the BAHA was snapped into place and switched on I could hear through it immediately. Still aware of hearing the audiologist’s voice through my good ear I could now hear her through the BAHA, a crisper sound that seemed to be superimposed over normal hearing. This was far better than I’d experienced with the test band.
On leaving the hospital I could hear my wife as we walked along even though she was on my deaf side. I could hear the higher pitched sounds of our footsteps, and the wind as we left through the main doors of the hospital. I was amazed at the additional sound I was getting.
The next day I went into work, still very aware of the additional sounds from my deaf side – it was really strange to hear people talking from my deaf side. Later that day I was in a meeting with a major customer in which there was eight of us around the table. I would normally sit with everyone to my left or in front of me – ie at either one of two corner positions around the table, on this occasion a sat at one of the opposite positions – this time everyone was to my right or in front. I didn’t miss a thing, even when the person immediately to my right spoke fairly quietly. This gave me the confidence that I now didn’t need to worry anymore than anyone else about missing something in a meeting. This effect is however limited to situations where there is very little sound from my good side – which would otherwise compete with the sound from the BAHA. In noisy situations, such as a busy pub, then the sound via the BAHA just isn’t strong enough to be heard over the noise through my natural ear. I guess if my good ear wasn’t ‘as good’ things would be different. This can be easily tested by plugging up my good ear as a test.
Even though, the BAHA is well worth having for SSD in my opinion. I’ve been without it for two short periods and really missed it. And to confirm effectiveness my wife believes I missed a lot more when I was without it.
Why was I without my BAHA? Well on both occasions it was my fault. The first time was because the bone/anchor integration failed and the abutment literally fell out. This was after just four weeks of having the device for the first time. Failure was put down to the fact that it received a fair clout one day while I was working in the greenhouse, about 6 weeks after the operation. I didn’t think it did any damage at first, but most likely this interfered with the oscliointegration. The abutment seemed fairy firm after the knock but nonetheless became loose after I had the sound processor fitted. This resulted in having the operation all over again. No problem the second time – and at the time of writing it has been in place for nearly 12 months.
The second time I had to do without was when I lost the BAHA while out cycling. This was weird as at one point I heard what sounded like something having fallen off my bike and tinkling along the road, when I’d looked down I noticed one of my bar end plugs was missing and assumed that’s what it had been; but half an hour later when I stopped at a café I took my helmet off and the BAHA was gone. I should have used the cotton tie that comes with the unit that attaches to clothing. I was without for two weeks that time while I organised an insurance claim ( the device replacement cost was £1,445) and the audiologist ordered a replacement. This time I was without a sound processor for just two weeks – and I missed it.
In conclusion for SSD I would say the BAHA is worth having, mainly to restore confidence that you won’t miss anyone speaking to you from your deaf side – providing it’s not a too noisy environment, and it will help with clarity and general hearing from your deaf. It is not as good as fully functional ear – so this should not be the expectation – but it is a valuable aid.
