Hearing Aided

The air around us is filled with sounds. Be it a catchy song or a ringing phone, these sounds must journey through our ears unhindered for us to perceive them. When this passage is interrupted in the middle or outer ear, conductive hearing loss arises. Treatment involves implanting a hearing aid into the skull. Occasionally these implants fail, particularly in patients with brittle bone disease or those taking corticosteroids. Using lasers to make the implant surface more rugged, at a microscopic level, could improve implant stability. Researchers investigated the effects of laser-modified implants in rabbits. Compared to standard machined implants, laser-modified implants were better anchored to the bone. Electron microscopy revealed enhanced bonding of the bone to the implant, signalled by protrusions from bone cells spreading out across the contours of the implant (pictured). Laser modification therefore looks set to lend a helping hand to potentially unstable implants.

Written by Lux Fatimathas

Lux Fatimathas

Writer

Having pursued science through a career in research, communications and publishing, she is currently a writer and editor for a healthcare marketing agency and also juggles freelance science writing.

• Image from work by Furqan Shah and Martin Johansson, and colleagues
• Institute of Clinical Sciences, Sahlgrenska Academy at University of Gothenburg, Göteborg, Sweden
• Image originally published under a Creative Commons Licence (BY 4.0)
• Published in PLOS One, June 2016