MED-EL presents breakthrough innovations in cochlear implant care

March 6, 2024 – (Innsbruck, Austria): MED-EL, a global leader in implantable hearing solutions, unveiled its latest cochlear implant innovations, reflecting the growing importance of personalized healthcare and maximizing digital solutions to empower patients in their own care and everyday lives. 

• MED-EL introduces four new devices and software supporting individualized hearing care
• Seamlessly streaming favorite sounds: AudioStream Adapter for RONDO 3
• Accessing personalized care anytime & anywhere: MAESTRO 10 & HearCare MED-EL App
• Navigating anatomy with precision: Upgraded OTOPLAN software for cochlear implant surgery

Cochlear implants are groundbreaking medical devices that allow people living with hearing loss to reconnect to the world around them. Today, MED-EL has announced a suite of new technology for cochlear implant users and the hearing care professionals who support them, including a remote care app, wireless streaming accessory, and clinical software. Together, they are a major step forward in facilitating individualized hearing healthcare.

“Every person is unique. How we hear and the way we live our lives is as varied and individual as we are. At MED-EL we choose to celebrate this uniqueness and use it as inspiration to design and develop products that are not ‘one-size-fits-all’”, emphasizes Jennifer Robinson, Corporate Director of Product Management at MED-EL. "Our latest product innovations represent a milestone in personalized hearing healthcare for the clinicians and patients who use our cochlear implants. Using the latest advancements in technology we can put hearing care directly into the hands of the people affected, making their daily lives easier, and enhancing their hearing experiences. Through enhanced remote care, fitting capabilities, and surgical planning tools we also empower clinicians and surgeons to easily and quickly deliver personalized support and decisions that reflect each patient's unique needs, anytime, anywhere.”

Remote accessibility and personalized support: MAESTRO 10 & HearCare MED-EL App  

For many people, hospital visits can be costly, stressful, or a major disruption to work schedules or family routines. The HearCare MED-EL app reduces these burdens by providing the power to maximise their hearing devices at the touch of a button without leaving home. Users can check the functions of their audio processors, save customized programs for future use, and even allow audiologists to make adjustments to hearing settings and see the outcomes without needing to be present or online at the same time. The app will automatically sync with any updates remotely programmed at the hospital. A new Guardian Function enables parents or caregivers to check the status of their child’s cochlear implant in real-time from anywhere with just a tap on their smartphone and receive alerts for added security. 

These new features are supported by a new clinical software, MAESTRO 10, that enables trained professionals in hospitals or Care Centers to remotely fine-tune audio processor fitting maps for RONDO 3, SONNET 2, and SONNET 2 EAS users, liberating patients from the confines of in-person appointments.

> MAESTRO 10 and the HearCare MED-EL App will be globally available from spring 2024.

Empowering personalized listening experiences: AudioStream Adapter for RONDO 3

The newly introduced AudioStream Adapter redefines wireless streaming for users of the RONDO 3 audio processor. Bluetooth® Low Energy technology seamlessly connects users to their favorite sounds, whether at home or on the go. Compatible with iOS and Android smartphones and tablets, as well as smart TVs, this versatile accessory delivers immersive stereo sound, enhancing phone calls, music, and TV-watching experiences. 

> The AudioStream Adapter has recently been launched and is now readily available for use.

Redefining cochlear implant surgery: Introducing the next generation of OTOPLAN

Personalized hearing care for people with cochlear implants begins before surgery. To help revolutionize cochlear implant surgery, the latest version of OTOPLAN software represents a significant advancement in precision and patient care. Developed collaboratively by CASCINATION AG and MED-EL, this advanced software allows surgeons to see and navigate the intricacies of each patient's unique anatomy with unparalleled accuracy and efficiency before and after surgery. 
Through detailed 3D visualizations, surgeons gain crucial insights to help customize procedures and select a cochlear implant that fits the size of a person’s unique cochlea, optimizing hearing outcomes. Additionally, OTOPLAN now includes the capability to perform post-operative imaging using X-ray technology, greatly improving the precision of cochlear implant surgery, particularly for anatomy-based fitting, and enhancing the implant's alignment with the individual's unique anatomy.

> The roll out date for OTOPLAN for countries accepting the CE mark will be April 15, 2024.

"Innovation is not just about new products; it is about transforming lives”, states Jennifer Robinson, Corporate Director of Product Management at MED-EL. “Our latest advancements in cochlear implant care represent a milestone in personalized healthcare. From empowering patients to enhancing surgical precision, these innovations embody our commitment to making a meaningful difference in every individual's hearing journey.”

About MED-EL 

MED-EL Medical Electronics, a leader in implantable hearing solutions, is driven by a mission to overcome hearing loss as a barrier to communication and quality of life. The Austrian-based, privately owned business was co-founded by industry pioneers Ingeborg and Erwin Hochmair, whose ground-breaking research led to the development of the world’s first micro-electronic multi-channel cochlear implant (CI), which was successfully implanted in 1977 and was the basis for what is known as the modern CI today. This laid the foundation for the successful growth of the company in 1990, when they hired their first employees. To date, MED-EL has more than 2,700 employees from around 80 nations and 30 locations worldwide.
The company offers the widest range of implantable and non-implantable solutions to treat all types of hearing loss, enabling people in 136 countries enjoy the gift of hearing with the help of a MED-EL device. MED-EL’s hearing solutions include cochlear and middle ear implant systems, a combined electric acoustic stimulation hearing implant system, auditory brainstem implants as well as surgical and non-surgical bone conduction devices. www.medel.com   

CEO

Doz. DI Dr DDr med. h.c. Ingeborg Hochmair

Press Contact

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MED-EL Medical Electronics
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E: press@medel.com