Home › Hearing Disorders and Deafness › NCT07683689

Improving Cochlear Implant Outcomes Through Modeling and Programming Strategies Based on Human Inner Ear Pathology

Who can join

Ages 18 to 80 · All sexes

Inclusion Criteria:

* Age 18 - 80 years old
* Native speakers of American English or Multilingual
* Wears a cochlear implant manufactured by Advanced Bionics (Clarion Hi-Focus I or newer)
* At least 6 months of listening experience with their cochlear implant, but could be recruited and consented prior.
* Bilateral hearing loss

Exclusion Criteria:

* Inability to provide informed consent
* Lost their hearing prior to the age of language acquisition (3-4 years) but did not receive a cochlear implant until adulthood
* Do not have age-appropriate speech perception testing from clinical visits or do not use their implant for oral communication
* Have neurological disease
* Have unmanageable facial nerve stimulation or pain as a result of their implant
* Does not tolerate implant well
* Unable to carry out the study protocol or tasks required in the study
* Poor vision such that the subject cannot adequately perform the study tasks on the computer screen

About the study

Cochlear implants are devices placed in the inner ear through surgery to help people with severe to profound hearing loss. While these devices work well overall, results vary widely from person to person. Many people with cochlear implants still have trouble understanding speech in noisy places and enjoying music.

This study looks at whether customizing the way a cochlear implant is programmed, based on the health of the hearing nerve in different areas of the ear, can help people understand speech better in noisy settings. The researchers will adjust or turn off certain electrodes in areas where the nerve appears weaker, then test whether this improves hearing compared to each person's everyday program. They will also examine whether giving people time to get used to the new program leads to better results.

What is being tested

• Everyday Clinical Listening Program (Control) (device)
• ENI-Based Experimental Program 1 (device)
• ENI-Based Experimental Program 2 (device)

Sponsor: Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary · Participants: 45 · Started: Oct 1, 2026

Contact the study team

• Julie Arenberg, PhD, CCC-A · Phone: 617-807-7904

Official record on ClinicalTrials.gov — NCT07683689

Locations in the U.S.

Conditions

• Hearing Disorders and Deafness

From ClinicalTrials.gov, data retrieved Nov 15, 2026. Each study sets its own eligibility; the study team decides who can join.