Hearing Again: A Retired Nurse's Journey with Cochlear Implants

Hearing loss can be a tough challenge, especially for older adults. Kitty Grutzmacher, a retired nurse from Elgin, faced this issue for over a decade. Her hearing aids weren't cutting it anymore. She struggled to hear anything, even in quiet settings. This made her pull back from social activities. She stopped playing cards, going to Bible study, and even attending church. It was a lonely time for her. Grutzmacher's audiologist couldn't offer much help. But she found a solution at Northwestern University's cochlear implant program. Cochlear implants are electronic devices that can significantly improve a person's ability to understand speech. Age isn't a barrier. As long as someone is healthy enough for surgery, they can get a cochlear implant. In fact, another patient at Northwestern was 99 years old when they got theirs. However, cochlear implants aren't a quick fix. After the operation, it takes months of practice and adaptation to get used to clearer hearing. The degree of improvement varies from person to person. But Grutzmacher didn't hesitate. She knew she couldn't keep living in isolation. After the implant procedure, she could finally have phone conversations, something that was impossible just a few weeks earlier. Hearing loss is common among older adults, but it's often undertreated. It can lead to depression, social disconnection, and cognitive decline. Yet, fewer than one-third of people over 70 who could benefit from hearing aids actually use them. If hearing aids no longer provide clarity, a cochlear implant assessment might be the next step. Cochlear implantation is a commitment. It involves surgery to implant an internal receiver and electrodes in the inner ear. Patients also wear an external processor. After the surgery, it takes time for the brain to adjust to the new sounds. Voices initially sound robotic, but within a few months, speech clarity improves significantly. Grutzmacher's initial testing showed she could only understand 4% of words on the AzBio Sentence Test with her hearing aids. But two weeks after her cochlear implant was activated, she could understand 46% of words with a hearing aid in her other ear. Her TV volume went from 80 to 20. She was excited to reconnect with her friends and community.