People who have a cochlear implant in one ear and a hearing aid in the other are referred to as bimodal. They may use a hearing aid in one ear while they wait for a second implant surgery. Or, like me, their hearing in the good ear is good enough that a hearing aid is sufficient. I won’t hesitate to get a second cochlear implant when I need it. But for now, why mess with something that works?

I like my Phonak Marvel hearing aid, but I’ve been struggling with speech in noise. I was excited about the possibility of replacing it with one of the new powerful AI-assisted aids that boost speech in noise. My cochear implant is Advanced Bionics, made by Sonova, the same parent company as Phonak. It made sense to stay in the same family. Phonak’s Audeo Infinio Ultra Sphere gets excellent reviews, so I decided to try that. I was met with an unwelcome surprise.

An AI hearing aid would not be compatible with my cochlear implant.

What does compatibility mean in practical terms? My Phonak Marvel hearing aid and my Advanced Bionics Naida cochlear implant work in sync. When I am streaming using Bluetooth from my phone to make phone calls or listen to music or podcasts, the sound goes to both ears. If I want to balance the sound so more is coming from one direction, I can easily do that on the app.

But the new hearing aids don’t sync with cochlear implants. This is true not only for AB but for Cochlear and Med-El as well. You’d think companies like Sonova, which makes both AB and Phonak, would jump at the opportunity to capture these bimodal customers. They may well wish they could. But, as my audiologist explained, the two devices fall into two different categories of FDA-approved medical devices. Cochlear implants are Class 3 devices, which require surgical implantation. Hearing aids are Class 1 or 2 devices. As I understand it, Class 1 and 2 devices receive FDA approval much more rapidly than Class 3 devices. So, for now at least, cochlear implant innovations will lag behind innovations in hearing aids.

Would it be worth buying just one AI hearing aid and using it alone with my cochlear implant? Would these devices together improve sound quality despite the disconnect?

I would love to hear from anyone with a cochlear implant who has tried one of the new AI hearing aids like the Phonak or the ReSound with their cochlear implant. What was it like not to have the two devices sync when streaming? Did you keep the AI hearing aid or did you return it? Being bimodal is important to me and my audiologist suggested one of Phonak’s recent hearing aids that does not have the AI program. But the new technology is very tempting. I’m still making up my mind.

** For more about living with hearing loss, read my memoir Shouting Won’t Help, and for more practical advice try Smart Hearing. Both are available as Kindle or paperback.