Cone Beam CT Versus Multislice CT: Radiologic Diagnostic Agreement in the Postoperative Assessment of Cochlear Implantation.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the diagnostic concordance between multislice computed tomography (MSCT) and cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) in the early postoperative assessment of patients after cochlear implantation. STUDY DESIGN: Prospective, randomized, single-center, interventional, pilot study on the diagnostic performance of a medical device. SETTING: Tertiary referral center. PATIENTS Patients aged over 18 years requiring a computed tomographic (CT) scan after cochlear implant surgery. INTERVENTIONS: Nine patients were implanted with electrode arrays from three different manufacturers, including one bilateral. High-resolution MSCT and CBCT were then performed, and two experienced radiologists blinded to the imaging modality evaluated the randomized images, twice. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Concordance between MSCT and CBCT for assessing the scalar position (tympani or vestibuli) of the electrodes. Secondary outcome measures were also studied length of the intracochlear electrode array, percentage of implanted cochlea, number of intracochlear electrodes, and radiation doses. RESULTS: There was a good agreement between both CT scanners in determining the scalar position and estimating the number of implanted electrodes and percentage of implanted cochlea. CBCT had a lower radiation exposure. CONCLUSIONS: The CBCT appears to be a useful tool for postoperative assessment of cochlear implanted adult patients and is comparable to the conventional scanner in determining the scalar position, with lower radiation exposure.