Bone conduction hearing implants (BCHIs) are a type of surgically implanted hearing technology.
They’re suitable for people with certain types of hearing loss who do not get enough benefit from traditional hearing aids, or who cannot wear hearing aids for medical reasons.
BCHIs are sometimes referred to by different names, including:
- bone anchored hearing aids (BAHA)
- bone conduction hearing systems (BCHS)
- bone conduction hearing devices (BCHD)
How BCHIs work
BCHIs work by sending sound vibrations through the skull bone directly to the inner ear. This means the sound can bypass the parts of the ear that are damaged, missing or not working.
A BCHI is made up of 3 parts:
- an external sound processor that you can remove for sleep or washing
- an internal implant in the skull bone
- a connection – this can be directly through the skin or using magnets under the skin
BCHIs may help you:
- understand speech better and hear a more natural sound than with traditional hearing aids
- hear more clearly in noisy places
- improve awareness of where sounds are coming from
Many modern devices offer Bluetooth connectivity, accessories for linking to assistive listening systems, and smartphone apps to help adjust settings or find a lost processor.
Who BCHIs are suitable for
BCHIs may be suitable if you have:
- permanent conductive or mixed hearing loss with good levels of inner ear hearing
- single‑sided deafness
They can help if your hearing loss is caused by an outer or middle ear condition, such as:
- atresia or stenosis (narrow or absent ear canals)
- cholesteatoma
- otosclerosis
How to get BCHIs
If you’d like to explore this option, speak to your GP, audiologist or ENT specialist.
You’ll usually have a full hearing assessment, and you’ll need to try traditional hearing aids first if they’re appropriate for your type of hearing loss.
If hearing aids are not suitable or they do not help enough, you may be referred to a specialist hearing implant centre.
Not all audiology departments provide bone conduction implants, so you may have to travel for this.
A specialist team will assess your hearing needs and discuss whether a BCHI or another type of implant is suitable for you.
You may be offered a short trial with a headband‑mounted device. This lets you see how the technology works for you before deciding whether to have it surgically implanted.
If you do go ahead with the surgery, you’ll have follow-up appointments and ongoing support to make sure your implant fits well and the sound is comfortable and clear.