Does Monopolar Electrosurgery Adversely Impact the Bone Conduction Hearing Implant Bonebridge?

To determine whether exposure to monopolar electrosurgery during subsequent surgeries following Bonebridge implantation has negative impact on the implant.

Retrospective study.

Tertiary medical center.

Fifty-six patients who received Bonebridge implantation between December 2014 and June 2024 were reviewed. Twelve patients with exposure to monopolar electrosurgery during subsequent operation were included. Bonebridge-aided sound field thresholds, as well as subjective outcomes based on patient experience were analyzed to determine if there are any adverse effects on the implant after monopolar electrosurgery exposure.

The mean age at receiving Bonebridge implantation and subsequent operation were 15.1 ± 6.8 (range, 7.7-29.9) years and 16.5 ± 6.5 (range, 10.2-30.1) years, respectively. Each of the included patients experienced one episode of monopolar electrosurgery exposure after Bonebridge implantation. All monopolar electrosurgery exposures were in the head-and-neck region, but none of them involved the ipsilateral temporoparietal area. The mean pre-monopolar electrosurgery and post-monopolar electrosurgery Bonebridge aided sound field thresholds pure tone average were 31.8 ± 3.3 decibel hearing level and 29.5 ± 3.9 decibel hearing level, respectively (Wilcoxon signed-rank test, P = .203). No adverse events associated with implant malfunction occurred after monopolar electrosurgery exposure.

No adverse events or hearing impairment were observed in this series of Bonebridge-implanted patients who underwent operations involving monopolar electrosurgery. Notably, the exposures were of relatively brief duration and limited to areas outside the ipsilateral temporoparietal region. Further multicenter, prospective studies with larger cohorts and comprehensive adverse event analysis are warranted to better corroborate these findings.