Cochlear Implants in Patients with Fluctuant or Progressive Hearing Loss on the Better Ear

Introduction  Cochlear implants have been proposed for cases of unilateral hearing loss, especially in patients with tinnitus impairment. Several studies have shown that they result in definite improvement of sound localization and speech understanding, both in quiet and noisy environments. On the other hand, there are few references regarding cochlear implants in patients whose better ears present hearing loss. Objective  To report the audiological outcomes of three patients with unilateral deafness, in whom the better ears presented hearing losses, submitted to cochlear implants. Methods  Three patients with unilateral profound hearing loss underwent a cochlear implant performed by the same surgeon. Results  The patients' data are presented in detail. Conclusion  The indications for cochlear implants are becoming more diverse with the expansion of clinical experience and the observation that they definitely help patients with special hearing problems.