Hearing tests are also called audiometry (audio "means ear" and metry "means measuring"). Depending on the results of the audiometric test, the Ear, Nose, and Throat (ENT) doctor decides if the child should get a hearing implant, a hearing aid or another treatment.

It is important for the ear doctor to know what the ear and especially the cochlea looks like inside. Because the doctor cannot just look in the ear and see the cochlea and its hairs, a kind of x-ray must be taken.

Surgery can only be done when a child is fit and healthy. If a child has a bad cold or other infection, the doctor may say that the surgery will have to wait until another day.

The only thing that reminds the child of the cochlear implantation is a bandage on the head. Until the wound is healed, the child should not blow his or her nose too hard, because of the pressure this makes in the ear.

Depending on how quickly the wound heals, the audio processor will be put on after 3 to 6 weeks. Now the child can start hearing with the implant!

The audio processor will be adjusted to every child’s special hearing needs. This is called the "first fitting". In the first fitting, the child wears the audio processor while it is connected to a clinic computer that makes soft, loud, high and low sounds. They will be programmed into the audio processor so that hearing will always be good and comfortable for the child.