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Tailoring cochlear implants to inner ear nerve health may boost speech understanding in noisy places

NCT ID NCT07683689

Symptom relief Sponsor: Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

What the study statuses mean

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Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting This study
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Jul 06, 2026 · Last updated Jul 07, 2026 · Updated 1 time

Summary

This study tests whether adjusting cochlear implant programming based on the health of the hearing nerve in different parts of the inner ear can help people understand speech better in noisy settings. Researchers will compare two experimental sound-processing strategies against each participant's everyday clinical program. The trial enrolls adults aged 18–80 who use an Advanced Bionics cochlear implant and have bilateral hearing loss.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance
customized cochlear implant programming strategies
What this could lead to
If successful, this approach could help people with cochlear implants hear speech more clearly in noisy environments and enjoy music better.
What could go wrong
This is a small, early-stage study with 45 participants. The experimental programs may not improve hearing for everyone, and some people might prefer their standard program.

This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.

Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Phase

Not a phased trial

Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.

Participants

About 45 people

The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.

Expected to start

Jul 2026

An estimate. Start dates often move.

Expected to finish

Jul 2028

An estimate. End dates often move.

Lead sponsor

Other sponsor

The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.

Who can take part

This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.

Ages

18 to 80 years

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

Not accepted

This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.

Show the full entry requirements

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

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

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

Deafness hearing loss disorder

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

Deafness

How to take part

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  1. The official record

    ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.

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  2. A doctor treating you

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