Implanted Hearing Device Approved

Federal health officials approved a novel surgically implanted ear device that may help Americans frustrated with regular hearing aids to hear better. Symphonix Inc.’s Vibrant Soundbridge is for a type of moderate-to-severe hearing loss that afflicts millions of Americans. The loss is caused by problems with nerves vital for sound. Regular hearing aids help many of these people by magnifying sound. The Soundbridge works very differently: It converts sound to the mechanical vibrations of the delicate middle-ear bones--the way normal sound moves those bones.