This hearing aid can cure deafness: Researchers

To improve communication with patients with a hearing impairment, a team of researchers has developed a 'high-definition' aid to help those who are severely hard of hearing.

According to Bionics Institute in Melbourne, Australia, researchers, they hope that this technology will be an upgrade on existing cochlear implants as people with these devices are often unable to pick out complex sounds or hear clearly when there is background noise.

They stated that they are developing implants which stimulate the nerves using light instead of electrical impulses.

The research is backed by the Charity Action on Hearing Loss and is also launching a campaign to fund work on the new technology, reports the Dailystar.co.uk.

Researcher Carly Anderson said, "This could go a long way to solving the current limitations with cochlear implants, revolutionising how we can restore hearing to deaf people and how they hear speech and music."

"This could enable people to communicate more effectively, which could greatly improve their quality of life," Anderson added.

The cochlear implants were developed 40 years ago and its results can vary dramatically depending on the health of the inner ear and how an individual's brain responds to the device.

For the research, the team is using gene therapy to enable the hearing nerve to become responsive to light instead of electrical signals.