A Prospective Multicenter Study on the Performance of a Bone-Anchored Hearing Implant Using Minimally Invasive Ponto...

Area of Science:

• Otolaryngology
• Neurosurgery
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• The minimally invasive Ponto surgery (MIPS) was introduced in 2015 for percutaneous bone-anchored hearing systems (BAHS).
• MIPS aims to reduce complications and enhance cosmetic results through a fast, single-stage procedure.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the success rate of Ponto implant/abutment complexes for sound processor anchorage 3 months post-MIPS.
• To evaluate the safety and efficacy of the MIPS procedure in adult BAHS patients.

Main Methods:

• A 12-month prospective, multinational, multicenter, single-arm study.
• Sixty-four adult patients received MIPS for BAHS implantation.
• Assessment included implant stability, complications, skin reactions, pain, numbness, and quality of life.

Main Results:

• 96.6% of Ponto implant/abutment complexes provided reliable sound processor anchorage at 3 months.
• No severe intraoperative complications occurred; average procedure time was 10.5 minutes.
• High rates of healing (98.2%), no adverse skin reactions (96.5%), no pain (89.5%), and no numbness (98.2%) were observed at 3 months.

Conclusions:

• MIPS is a safe and effective surgical method for BAHS.
• The procedure is associated with low complication rates and positive patient-reported outcomes, including improved quality of life.