I am going to have the cochlear implant surgery in a few weeks. For the external device, I chose Cochlear Nucleus 7 + Kanso 2. My CI surgeon told me she will use CI622 electrode inside. What is the difference between Slim Straight (CI622), Slim 20 (C624), Slim Modiolar (CI632), Contour Advance (CI612)? In particular, the technical parameters are the same between CI622 and CI632 based on the comparison chart, but I found a research paper claims that CI632 has a higher average success rate than CI622 (75% vs. 41.6%). Should I ask for more info from my surgeon? Thanks a lot!
You probably have all the same information on Cochlear’s implants that I have.
My understanding of the different implants is based on the cat scan or MRI that was done before your surgery. The physical size and dimensions of your cochlea tend to call for a particular array.
Seems I remember the CI632 being best for hybrid applications to preserve existing lower frequencies but not sure about that. I think it has a shorter electrode. I have CI612 implants.
@Deaf_piper has a Cochlear hybrid implant.
@pathurley is knowledgeable about these things and uses Cochlear. Not sure which implants he has.
The attachment may help you if you have not seen it yet.
Good luck
https://www.cochlear.com/us/en/professionals/products-and-candidacy/nucleus/implant
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@Deaf_piper has a normal implant but used the part CI and part HA for a while before her hearing loss got worse. Australia has stopped using the hybrid implant.
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Thanks to @Zebras and @Raudrive.
I will have CI for one ear and HA for the other. My surgeon said CI will damage the residual hair cells, which I don’t have much left anyway. She also said she decides which implant fits me the best, but at that time I didn’t know what models are there, so I didn’t ask why she picked 622. I trust her decision, but am just curious why it is picked. Between CI632 and CI622, I can see their arrays have different shapes (curly vs. straight), so I guess the decision is based on physical dimensions, but not sure if there is any difference in technology. I emailed Cochlear and a local agent will contact me soon.
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First I wonder where those success numbers came from, they seem very low.
All of those are from the same series, they do have slightly different structures to allow for different cochlea’s. Surgeon experience and preference would also play some part. I think it is highly unlikely that there would be a significant difference in outcome between them.
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Dislab I have a 522,slim straight array. My surgeon told me that he uses the 522 when a patient has some residual they are trying to preserve. But that said, even if they do manage to save some residual it’s not guaranteed to stay that way.
I’m bimodal N7 & Resound Enzo 3D, and I love the way everything just streams into my ears. This technology is amazing, once you have your phone, HA and processor all paired together and working. No extra ALD’s hanging around my neck, after years of having a streamer attached to me.
When I had my R) ear CI surgery in July 2019, my surgeon did preserve my residual, but 2.5 years later I’ve lost a huge chunk of it. You can see how much in my Audiogram as both ears were the same 3 months post op. I originally had a EAS attachment but I ditched that 14 months ago when my residual started to decline.
Work hard in rehab and you will have amazing results. Don’t be disappointed if you don’t understand speech straight away. Some people do some people don’t, some people it takes a few mappings before they can pick out words.
Good luck with your surgery 
Let us know how you are going after the op.
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Zebras the hybrid array isn’t being used very much by Cochlear surgeons anywhere. As it’s an “old series” array and not MRI compatible. Since the 6 series was released, the specific hybrid array is all but defunct, but I would assume some surgeons might still use it if asked.
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Just to add my 2 cents because I haven’t been here in awhile, I have the CI622 and have had it since 7/20. I use this with both the Nucleus N7 and the Kanso 2. I originally had 2 N7’s, but since the FDA approved the Kanso 2 withon a certain time of my surgery, I was eligible to upgrade one of my processors to the Kanso 2.
I wasn’t told of a difference between the array’s. The hearing loss in my right ear was sudden and there wasn’t any residual left. My left ear, that was my bad ear before the loss in my right ear uses a Resound Quattro 9 which I hear normally out of, but without the HA, my hearing is horrendous. The nice thing about the implant is that it makes a fuller, richer hearing experience. After a year and a half, the hearing with both ears seems normal and I don’t notice the implant. The only problem is the occasional background noises, like appliances, outdoor background noise that the sound processor picks up. My audiologist was able to get rid of some of this. I am also able to do MRI’s with my implant. I did not have a choice of the array nor the manufacturer. I had done some research and was leaning toward Cochlear. Thankfully, that is the brand my surgeon works with.
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Thanks for sharing! @debbie_o
I asked my surgeon about the difference between CI622 and CI632, and was told CI632 requires an insert tool that has a higher failure rate (something like that). She did say there is no guarantee to keep residual hearing which I don’t have much left anyway. I had the implant surgery last week and I am waiting for the activation. Very excited about this.
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Late to this thread. It’s ALWAYS ok to ask your physician/surgeon questions about their decisions.
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