Custom cochlear implant tuning based on ear shape may boost hearing
NCT ID NCT05451628
First seen Jul 02, 2026 · Last updated Jul 02, 2026
Summary
This study tests whether programming a cochlear implant based on each person's unique inner ear structure improves hearing compared to the standard one-size-fits-all approach. Adults with severe to profound hearing loss who already have a MED-EL cochlear implant will receive both types of programming and have their speech recognition tested. The goal is to see if matching the implant's frequency settings to the natural layout of the cochlea leads to better sound perception.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Anatomy-based cochlear implant fitting (device programming)
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this approach could make cochlear implants work better for each person, potentially improving speech understanding in quiet and noisy settings.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-stage study with 40 participants, so results may not apply to everyone. The new fitting method may not provide a meaningful benefit over standard care.
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
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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
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About 40 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Mar 2022
- Expected to finish
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Jan 2027
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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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
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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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 Hide 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 years * Post-lingual onset of severe to profound sensory-neural hearing loss in the implanted ear(s) * Post-operative Computed Tomography (CT) scan of the CI electrode available * Pre-operative result of pure-tone audiometry, speech test in quiet and in noise available * Subject implanted with MED-EL cochlear implant(s) * Subjects received a Flex28, FlexSoft or Standard electrode * Subject planned to receive a SONNET 2, SONNET 3 or RONDO 3 audio processor on the newly implanted side * Audio processor not yet activated on the newly implanted side * The most apical active electrode contact has to be inserted at least 450° * Minimum of 10 active channels can be activated * Fluent in the language of the test centre * Signed and dated Informed Consent Form (ICF) before the start of any study-specific procedure Exclusion Criteria: * Lack of compliance with any inclusion criteria * Electric Acoustic Stimulation (EAS) user (user of an EAS audio processor) * Implanted with C40+, C40X and C40C * Implanted with an Auditory Brainstem Implant (ABI) or Split electrode array * Anything that, in the opinion of the Investigator, would place the subject at increased risk or pre-clude the subject's full compliance with or completion of the study
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
2 sites. The list below names each one and where it is.
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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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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Antwerp University Hopsital
RECRUITINGAntwerp, 2650, Belgium
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University Hospital Brussels
RECRUITINGBrussels, Brussels Capital, 1090, Belgium
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Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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