Advanced Bionics HiRes™ Cochlear Implant System

Featuring Two AB Cochlear Implants:

HiRes Ultra 3D Cochlear Implant

The HiRes Ultra 3D’s innovative multi-magnet assembly provides alignment to the strong magnetic field of an MRI machine, allowing adult and pediatric users to safely undergo high-resolution imaging, such as 3.0 Tesla MRIs, without any preparation, surgery or head bandaging. 
 

Hassle Free MRIs

This unique multi-magnet assembly is composed of four rotatable magnets encased in a revolving disc allowing it to provide alignment with the 3D MRI field.

HiRes Ultra Cochlear Implant Family

The HiRes™ Ultra cochlear implant family was developed in collaboration with leading cochlear implant surgeons to meet the surgical needs and those of the recipient.
 

Low Profile

To make insertion easy and to provide flexibility for surgeons, the implants are designed for a shallow 1mm ramped recess, requiring minimal drilling to reduce surgery time. The thin 4.5mm profile and small footprint offers a discreet solution once implanted, making the implants suitable for both adults and children.

High Impact Resistance

The HiRes™ Ultra 3D, HiRes™ Ultra and 90K Advantage cochlear implants exceed the industry standard for impact resistance^{1, 2, 3} and allow recipients to participate in everyday activities and sports without worry. All implant components are highly reliable and durable.^{4, 5, 6}

Electrodes Designed for Choice: Without Compromise

The HiRes Ultra implant family offers two electrode designs, the straight HiFocus™ SlimJ electrode and the precurved HiFocus™ Mid-Scala electrode, to offer the surgeon a choice based on their practice preferences and the recipient’s anatomy. Both electrodes share the HiFocus design elements.

HiFocus electrode contacts are encased in a slim flexible tapered silicone carrier to minimize insertion forces and damage to cochlear structures during surgery.^7,8,10 HiFocus electrodes are designed with balanced stiffness, which allows for easy insertion within the scala tympani while making it less prone to bend upwards towards the basilar membrane and translocate. By minimizing cochlear disruption, HiFocus electrodes offer an increased opportunity for better hearing outcomes.^11,12

The HiFocus SlimJ or HiFocus Mid-Scala electrode provide the surgeon with maximum surgical flexibility based upon surgical preference while maintaining patient performance.^8,10,11

HiFocus SlimJ

The HiFocus™ SlimJ electrode is the latest electrode technology, designed for ease of handling and insertion. It is offered as a straight electrode with a gentle curvature, designed to be easily and smoothly inserted by freehand technique or with forceps. The main benefit of the gentle curvature next to easy insertion is to ensure electrode movement in the apical direction.

1  Balanced stiffness and tapered array profile 

Protects cochlear structures.

2  Optimal lateral wing

Allows for ease of handling and insertion of the electrode.

3  Gentle electrode curvature

Ensures electrode movement in the apical direction.

4  Tapered tip feature

For easy and smooth round window insertion.

Confidence of Insertion

Key to the design are the elements that allow a surgeon to easily handle the electrode in the surgical space and insert with minimal trauma to the delicate cochlea structures.⁸ The HiFocus SlimJ electrode has been designed to have balanced stiffness and flexibility to offer smooth insertion and protect cochlear structures. The wing feature allows for the best possible visualization of the cochlea, and precise control of the angle and speed of insertion. It provides an easy area for a surgeon to hold and control the electrode, even into the facial recess.

The HiFocus SlimJ electrode can be introduced into the cochlea by a surgeon’s preferred approach — by using round window, extended round window, or small cochleostomy, requiring only a 0.8mm opening. The tip feature is intended to ease the insertion through the round window.

“Brilliant electrode design, easy to insert without any resistance maintaining the right orientation, resistant to rotation, and fills the round window beautifully. HiFocus SlimJ is an ideal array for hearing preservation”

- Mr Sherif Khalil, MD, Cochlear Implant Surgeon, UK 

Full Spectral Coverage

A marker provides visual indication of insertion depth — the 23mm indicator represents approximately 420° in a standard cochlea, covering the main spiral ganglion population¹³ to provide optimal spectral coverage.

Cochlear Structure Preservation

Cochlear structure preservation allows for the best possible hearing outcomes in recipients. Studies have shown that recipients may perform better when cochlear structures are undamaged by the electrode insertion.^{7, 11,12,13} The HiFocus SlimJ electrode can be inserted and reinserted up to three times.

“Based on our multi-center studies in association with investigators at UCSF over the past 18 years, and a review of published reports, the results with the Hifocus SlimJ electrode are remarkable. The HiFocus SlimJ preserves cochlear structures better than any other lateral wall electrode tested to date.”

- Steve Rebscher, Specialist, Department of Otolaryngology, School of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco

HiFocus Mid-Scala

The HiFocus™ Mid-Scala electrode is the smallest styleted precurved electrode designed for consistent positioning in the scala tympani to protect the delicate cochlear structures.

1  One hand insertion

Only pre-curved electrode in the market designed for an easy controlled one hand insertion.

2  Placed mid-scala in the scala tympani

Only electrode in the market designed to be placed mid-scala in the scala tympani.

3  Tapered Tip feature

For Round Window insertion, with Straight Tip region to avoid tip fold over.

Consistency of Placement

Key to the design are the precurved shape, allowing the HiFocus Mid-Scala electrode to be inserted consistently with minimal cochlea trauma,¹⁰ a straight tip region to avoid tip fold overs, and if desired, the electrode can be loaded on a dedicated insertion tool to support a controlled insertion.

The HiFocus Mid-Scala electrode can be introduced into the cochlea by a surgeon’s preferred approach — freehand or by use of the insertion tool. It can be inserted using the round window, extended round window, or small cochleostomy approach, requiring only a 0.8mm opening. The tip feature is intended to ease the insertion through the round window

The distal blue marker can be used to ensure the electrode is properly positioned prior to the off stylet technique, thus avoiding tip fold over issues. The proximal blue marker provides a visual indication of a ‘full’ insertion depth — representing approximately 420° angular insertion in a standard cochlea, covering the main spiral ganglion population¹³ for optimal spectral coverage.

Full Spectral Coverage

The length and curvature of the HiFocus Mid-Scala allows for proven consistency of full coverage of the cochlea with 422° insertion depth signifying coverage of main Spiral Ganglion cell population²⁴ with a tight standard deviation of 20.7°.

Cochlear Structure Preservation

The shape of the HiFocus Mid-Scala places the electrode within the scala tympani, close to the spiral ganglion cells for maximum performance.^7,13  The electrode dimensions easily fit within the scala tympani which has been shown to protect the delicate structures of the cochlea¹⁰ whilst avoiding damage to the modiolus, osseous spiral lamina and the basilar membrane.^9,14,15  HiFocus Mid-Scala, being located central to perimodiolar, has an ideal basal placement for high frequencies.¹⁴  The HiFocus Mid-Scala electrode can be inserted and reinserted up to three times.

HiRes 90K Advantage Cochlear Implant

Proven Reliability

The HiRes 90K™ Advantage cochlear implant leads the industry cumulative survival rate (CSR)⁶, a measure that defines the likelihood of a device continuing to function over time. You can rest assured that Advanced Bionics builds cochlear implants with the clear intention that recipients can hear their best the rest of their entire life.

^{* For availability please contact your AB sales representative}

Electrode Options:

HiFocus™ 1j Electrode

Effective and Easy

Designed to be inserted approximately 25mm into a normally patent cochlea, with highly effective lateral wall placement in the scala tympani, and very easy to insert. With a robust design and ease of implantation, the HiFocus 1j is the electrode of choice for many surgeons worldwide.

^{* For availability please contact your AB sales representative}

Capturing and delivering details of sound

HiResolution implantable technology is the foundation for optimal hearing. The quality of the sound delivered by a cochlear implant system is a direct result of how well the system captures and delivers the details of sound. The HiRes family of cochlear implant was designed to deliver all of the loudness, pitch, and timing information that is essential for natural sound perception and appreciation of music: it automatically encodes the widest range of intensities (up to 80 decibels), it is capable of delivering frequency information to 120 cochlear places using a patented delivery method called current steering, and it provides up to 83,000 pulses per second¹.

Current Steering allows to stimulate the Spiral Ganglion cell population between electrode contacts.

Bidirectional Communication Link Between Implant and Sound Processor

All Advanced Bionics recipients or their caregivers can be confident that the implant is functioning properly and that they can benefit from all features of our technology thanks to the Bidirectional Inductive Communication Link that relays information about the implant’s functional status in real time back to the sound processor. The implant together with the sound processor build a closed loop that ensure proper functioning of the system.