The use of guidelines and registers for CI treatment in the EU

Introduction Cochlear implants have become the gold standard in the care of severely hearing impaired or deaf patients. For this reason, in addition to the CI Guideline (AWMF), the DGHNO presented a White Paper on cochlear implant (CI) care in 2018, which provides recommendations for uniform standards of care. The German legislature is also trying to ensure uniform follow-up monitoring of implants by establishing a register by law. The aim of this study was to examine to what extent the formalization process described above has already been implemented in other European countries.

Method An internet-based search was conducted in Pubmed and Google, searching for the keywords cochlear implant, guideline, registry, [country name], [professional society] individually and in combination in German and in the respective national language. Results were screened for the presence of a registry or guideline.

Results In 11 of 28 (39 % ) EU countries, our search identified a guideline or guideline-like format. The timelines of the last revision varied between 2009 and 2019, with 6 guidelines added since 2015. Registers were found in 7 of 28 (25 % ) countries. Particularly noteworthy are Switzerland (register with 3589 patients as of 2018) and France (register with 7929 patients as of 2018).

Discussion The formalization process of CI care is also taking shape in other European countries. This can be seen in the fact that the number of available guidelines has more than doubled in the last 5 years. Regarding the establishment of registers, efforts have progressed at different rates. This may be due to the considerable effort required to design and maintain a register on a permanent basis.

Poster-PDF A-1384.pdf

Publication History

Article published online:
13 May 2021