Page 11 - 2019 Annual Report

Hear, Hear
Cochlear implants have been used to treat deafness since the mid-1980s. Although they are an effective treatment option in many people with hearing loss, not everyone can benefit from
a cochlear implant due to specific anatomical variations in the cochlea that limit the ability to implant the device or sufficiently activate the auditory nerve.
Funded by a five-year, $9.7 million grant from the NIH BRAIN Initiative, Hubert Lim, PhD, associate professor in the Departments of Biomedical Engineering and Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, is leading an international effort to develop a new implantable device and surgical procedure.
Engineers, scientists, surgeons, and medical researchers will explore how to implant an electrode array directly into the auditory nerve.
This approach not only provides access to the hearing pathway
for those who cannot receive an implant into the cochlea, but may also improve activation of the auditory pathway to the brain, which could be helpful for hearing music and in noisy environments. Auditory nerve implants could lead to a new generation of neural technologies that help people regain lost hearing.
Centers & Institutes
Center for American Indian & Minority Health
Center for Genome Engineering
Center for Immunology
Center for Magnetic Resonance Research
Center for Neurobehavioral Health
Clinical and Translational Science Institute
Duluth Global Health Research Institute
Institute for Engineering in Medicine
Institute for Translational Neuroscience
Lillehei Heart Institute
Masonic Cancer Center
Paul & Sheila Wellstone Muscular Dystrophy Center
Program in Health Disparities Research
Stem Cell Institute
Medical School researchers develop Masonic Cancer Center holds 9th vaccines targeting fentanyl. Annual Cancer Research Symposium.
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