Patient performance with two types of multiple electrode intracochlear implant.

Area of Science:

• Audiology
• Biomedical Engineering
• Neuroscience

Background:

• Cochlear implants are vital for profound hearing loss.
• Comparing implant performance is crucial for patient selection.
• Limited data exists on Symbion Ineraid vs. Nucleus implant speech understanding.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate and compare the functional outcomes of Symbion Ineraid and Nucleus cochlear implants.
• To assess speech perception abilities with and without lip-reading.
• To investigate factors influencing speech understanding in postlingually deafened adults.

Main Methods:

• Comparative study of 9 Symbion Ineraid and 8 Nucleus cochlear implant recipients.
• Utilized F0, F1, F2 coding strategies for Nucleus implants.
• Assessed speech understanding using CID Everyday Sentences, Helen Test, Speech Tracking, spondees, vowel, and consonant tests.

Main Results:

• All patients demonstrated improved communication when combining implant sound with lip-reading.
• All 9 Symbion Ineraid recipients achieved some level of open speech understanding.
• Four of 8 Nucleus recipients achieved open speech understanding; others showed good discrimination but potential cochlear nerve damage.

Conclusions:

• Both cochlear implant systems enhance communication in postlingually deafened adults.
• Symbion Ineraid implants show consistent open speech understanding in this cohort.
• Nucleus implant outcomes vary, with some achieving open speech understanding and others indicating potential cochlear nerve issues.