Multichannel auditory brainstem implant: update on performance in 61 patients

Area of Science:

• Neurosurgery
• Audiology
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Neurofibromatosis Type 2 (NF2) commonly leads to deafness due to bilateral vestibular schwannomas (VSs) requiring surgical removal.
• Traditional cochlear implants are often ineffective for NF2-related deafness because of auditory nerve discontinuity post-surgery.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the safety and efficacy of an advanced multichannel auditory brainstem implant (ABI) in patients with Neurofibromatosis Type 2.
• To assess the long-term benefits of ABI for hearing restoration and communication in NF2 patients.

Main Methods:

• An eight-electrode array ABI was implanted on the cochlear nucleus during VS removal surgery.
• Device activation occurred 6 weeks post-implantation, with psychophysical and speech perception tests conducted regularly for up to 8 years.

Main Results:

• The multichannel ABI demonstrated safety and effectiveness in providing auditory sensations for most NF2 patients.
• Patients experienced improved communication compared to lipreading alone and could detect environmental sounds.
• Significant speech understanding was achieved in some cases using only ABI sound without lipreading cues.

Conclusions:

• Multichannel ABIs are a safe and effective option for hearing restoration in Neurofibromatosis Type 2 patients.
• ABI technology enhances communication, environmental sound awareness, and speech perception in NF2.
• The benefits of ABI in NF2 patients show continued improvement over an 8-year period.