Bilateral cochlear implantation in a patient with long-term deafness.

PURPOSE OF THE STUDY: 1) To report the case of a 70-year-old patient with a history of auditory deprivation for 80% of his life and who received bilateral cochlear implants and 2) to discuss different aspects of the case, including duration of auditory deprivation, the decision for bilateral implantation, age at implantation, and the use of this treatment modality for tinnitus. CASE REPORT: A two-stages bilateral cochlear implantation was performed in a 70-year-old patient with long-term deafness without operative or post-operative problems with excellent functional result. DISCUSSION: Various studies have reported that in patients with long-term auditory deprivation, the results of cochlear implants are delayed and sometimes unsatisfactory when compared to patients with more recent post-lingual deafness. However they did not contraindicate the surgery. The positive results with the first implant (both for the tinnitus and the hearing loss) motivated the patient and medical team to proceed to bilateral implantation. CONCLUSION: Patients with longstanding auditory deprivation can achieve good functional results even though at a slower rate. The use of bilateral cochlear implants accelerates and optimizes the final outcome.

First results of chronic electrical stimulation with a round-window electrode in totally deaf patients.

A few patients who had become totally deaf in adulthood were chronically implanted with an electrode on the round window. Elicitable auditory sensations were limited but proved beneficial enough for a small portable stimulator to be suggested for everyday use. Over a period of several months subjects were monitored several times for a few days at the laboratory and trained to make better use of their prosthesis. Such a device appears safe and patients have become attached to its use. One subject suffering from tinnitus was also given another stimulator delivering positive direct current which suppresses the tinnitus.