Investigation of follow up of CI-patients with preoperative resthearing compared to hearing aid supply

Introduction Due to continuous improvement of cochlea implants (CIs) it is by now also reasonable to consider an implantation for patients with a cochlear reserve, if a hearing aid is no longer sufficient. The aim of this study was to investigate the follow-up of patients after CI-operation compared to the preoperative hearing performance with hearing aid with a relevant cochlear reserve.

Methods The present study included a total of 30 patients who underwent CI implantation between 2018 and 2022. Inclusion criteria for study participation were a single syllable understanding of at least 50%. The single syllable understanding at 65 dB SPL before CI implantation has been compared to follow-up testings of at least 12 months after implantation. Results The average maximum single syllable understanding before CI-implantation was at 61,0 ± 11,9 %. The single syllable understanding with hearing aid was at 34,5 % ± 18,3 %. 86,7 % of the patients before CI-implantation did not reach the maximum syllable understanding. After CI-implantation the average single syllable understanding was at 72,3 ± 17 %. 73 % of the patients exceeded the maximum syllable understanding. 97 % of the patients showed an improvement of hearing after CI-implantation compared to the hearing with hearing aid. In total a hearing improvement of 37,7 % has been reached.

Conclusion It was able to demonstrate that the majority of the patients with a preoperative cochlear reserve benefit from CI compared to hearing aid-supply. Further studies with larger study population as well as continuous check-ups concerning single syllable understanding should be performed in order to confirm the benefit of CI-implantation for patients with reasonable preoperative rest hearing performance.

Publication History

Article published online:
12 May 2023