The short answer: Hearing aids always come off before you enter the scanner room. A cochlear implant is different: the outside processor comes off, but the internal part stays in your head. Many implants are labeled MR Conditional, which means a scan is allowed only under set conditions. Those conditions depend on the exact model, so your MRI team has to identify the device first.
Can you wear hearing aids during an MRI?
No. Hearing aids are removable, so the rule is simple. RadiologyInfo, the patient site of the American College of Radiology and the Radiological Society of North America, lists external hearing aids among the items to remove before you enter the MRI room. It gives the reason too: the strong magnetic field may damage an external hearing aid.
Take them out in the changing area and store them in the locker. Tell the technologist that you will not hear well without them. Staff can agree on hand signals with you before the table moves. You still get ear protection. Our article on why an MRI machine is so loud explains the noise.
Why is a cochlear implant a different problem?
A hearing aid makes sound louder. A cochlear implant does a different job. The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) describes an external portion that sits behind the ear and a second portion that a surgeon places under the skin. The implant bypasses damaged parts of the ear and stimulates the auditory nerve directly.
The part under the skin usually holds a small magnet. That magnet keeps the outside headpiece in place. It is also the main source of trouble in a scanner. The FDA page on cochlear implant risks warns that being close to an MRI unit may dislodge the implant or demagnetize its internal magnet. The same page adds that FDA has approved some implants for some types of MRI studies done under controlled conditions.
What does MR Conditional mean for a cochlear implant?
The FDA states that an MR Conditional device may be used safely only within an MR environment that matches its conditions of safe use. FDA also says patients with an implanted device should not have an MRI unless the device has been positively identified as MR Safe or MR Conditional.
For a cochlear implant, the conditions usually cover four things:
- Field strength. Most labels name 1.5 tesla, 3 tesla, or both.
- The magnet. It stays in place, stays in place under a splint and bandage kit, or comes out in a small operation.
- Scanner settings. Labels set limits on radiofrequency energy (SAR) and on the magnetic field gradient.
- The outside parts. The sound processor and headpiece always come off.
The same logic applies to heart devices, which we cover in MRI with a pacemaker or defibrillator.
Which conditions apply to which implant?
These examples come from manufacturer documents. They do not replace the current guideline for your own device.
Cochlear Nucleus. The Cochlear MRI guidelines for professionals list the Nexa and Profile Plus (CI600 series) implants as "implant magnet in place" at both 1.5 and 3.0 tesla. The older Profile (CI500 series), Freedom, CI24R and CI24M implants need the Nucleus MRI Kit at 1.5 tesla with the magnet in place. At 3.0 tesla, the guideline says the magnet should be surgically removed. The CI22M without a removable magnet is contraindicated for MRI at both strengths. Cochlear states the kit is applied by an ENT physician.
Advanced Bionics. The company's MRI safety information for the HiRes Ultra 3D calls the implant MR Conditional at 1.5 and 3.0 tesla with the magnet in place. It says the magnet design allows scanning without head angle limits, surgical magnet removal or a bandaging protocol. It recommends a wait of 2 to 4 weeks after implant surgery. It also states that MRI is contraindicated for the older CLARION C1 and CII implants. For the HiRes 90K and HiRes Ultra models, it tells staff to contact the company.
MED-EL. The MED-EL MRI page says SYNCHRONY and SYNCHRONY 2 implants allow scans at 1.5 and 3.0 tesla with the implant magnet in place. The page describes a magnet that rotates freely and self-aligns inside its housing. We could not load MED-EL's conditions for its older implants, so this article does not state them.
The newer designs share one idea. A magnet that can turn lines up with the scanner's field, so the field does not twist it. Researchers call these diametric or rotatable magnets. Older implants use a fixed (axial) magnet.
Bone-anchored devices. The same Cochlear page covers two bone conduction families. The Baha Attract System has a magnet under the skin and is MR Conditional at 1.5 tesla with that magnet in place. For 3.0 tesla, the internal magnet must be surgically removed. The Osia OSI300 implant is listed as magnet in place at 1.5 and 3.0 tesla. The OSI200 and OSI100 need the Osia MRI Kit at 1.5 tesla and magnet removal at 3.0 tesla. We did not load a primary source for middle ear implants, so ask the implant center about those.
What can go wrong, and how often?
Three problems come up in the studies: pain, a magnet that moves, and a shadow on the picture.
A 2026 systematic review in the American Journal of Neuroradiology pooled 14 observational studies. Across 814 MRIs in 668 implanted ears, it counted 167 adverse events, a prevalence of 20%. Pain made up 51% of the events and magnet displacement 22%. Polarity reversal of the magnet made up 2%. Events were more frequent with axial magnets. The review found no adverse events in patients with diametric magnets.
A separate 2025 systematic review in Otology and Neurotology looked only at rotatable magnet implants across 18 studies. Problems were rare but not absent. It found three pain cases and one magnet displacement.
Pain under a head wrap can be significant. In a prospective study of 27 adults and 42 scans, pain rose by a mean of 3.9 points on an 11-point scale. Still, 88% of scans were completed, and no magnet or device complications occurred.
A displaced magnet usually means surgery. A German series of nine such cases reported an average of 29 days without the implant for eight patients. The ninth developed an infection, lost the implant and went 420 days without it. One-third of those scans had been done with no precautions such as a compression bandage.
Image artifact is the third issue. The Advanced Bionics document reports an artifact radius of 4.1 to 6.5 cm at 1.5 tesla with one HiRes Ultra 3D magnet in place. That can hide brain tissue near the implant.
How do you prepare for the scan?
- Say it when you book. Tell the scheduler you have a hearing implant. Do not wait for the screening form.
- Bring your implant ID card. The team needs the manufacturer and model. An implant in each ear means two devices to check.
- Ask your implant team to confirm the model. Your audiologist or surgeon can confirm it and send the current MRI guideline.
- Ask which condition applies. Magnet in place, a splint and bandage kit, or magnet removal.
- Take off the outside parts. The processor and headpiece stay outside the scanner room.
- Report pain at once. Use the squeeze ball. The technologist can stop the scan.
RadiologyInfo makes the same point: staff must know the exact device type and manufacturer before the exam. Our MRI safety guide covers the full screening list. If you are still working out a new hearing symptom, symptom.md covers common ear and hearing complaints.
The bottom line
Hearing aids come off before every MRI. A cochlear implant or bone-anchored device does not rule out a scan, but no single rule covers every implant. The model decides the field strength, whether a bandage kit is needed and whether the magnet has to come out. Newer rotatable magnet implants have far fewer reported problems than older fixed magnet designs. Bring your implant card, and let the implant team and the MRI team confirm the conditions before the day of the scan.
Last updated: October 2026. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. MRI conditions differ by implant model and change over time, so confirm the current manufacturer guideline with your implant team and MRI facility before any scan.