Cochlear Implants & Implantable Hearing Devices Flashcards

Bone-anchored hearing aids (BAHA/OSIA) are most appropriate for which type of hearing loss?

Answer: Conductive or mixed hearing loss, or single-sided deafness

Bone-anchored devices transmit sound directly through the skull to the cochlea via bone conduction, making them ideal for conductive/mixed loss or single-sided deafness where air conduction is insufficient.

During the cochlear implant evaluation process, which professional is typically responsible for device programming (mapping)?

Answer: Audiologist certified in CI programming

A certified audiologist specializing in cochlear implants performs the programming (mapping) sessions, setting T-levels, C-levels, and adjusting processing parameters to optimize the patient's hearing experience.

What is 'residual hearing preservation' in the context of contemporary cochlear implantation?

Answer: Using surgical techniques and electrode designs that minimize cochlear trauma to preserve low-frequency acoustic hearing post-implant

Residual hearing preservation involves atraumatic surgical technique and flexible 'soft' electrode arrays to maintain low-frequency hearing, enabling 'electric-acoustic stimulation' (EAS/hybrid) after implantation.

The primary reason cochlear implant electrodes are designed to be placed as close as possible to the modiolus (perimodiolar design) is to:

Answer: Reduce current spread and improve frequency selectivity by being closer to the spiral ganglion neurons

Perimodiolar electrodes are positioned closer to the spiral ganglion neurons, reducing the current required for stimulation and improving channel selectivity, which can enhance speech perception.

Which outcome measure is most commonly used to assess speech perception benefit in adult cochlear implant recipients in the United States?

Answer: Consonant-Nucleus-Consonant (CNC) word recognition in quiet

CNC monosyllabic word recognition in quiet is the standard FDA-approved outcome measure used to assess post-implant speech perception benefit in adult CI recipients.

Auditory neuropathy spectrum disorder (ANSD) is characterized by which audiologic finding that may still support cochlear implant candidacy?

Answer: Present otoacoustic emissions (OAEs) with absent or abnormal auditory brainstem response (ABR)

ANSD typically shows present OAEs (indicating outer hair cell function) but absent or severely abnormal ABR (indicating disrupted auditory nerve synchrony); CI can bypass the dyssynchronous neural pathway.

When counseling a family about cochlear implant outcomes for a child with bilateral profound SNHL, which prognostic factor is most strongly associated with better spoken language outcomes?

Answer: Earlier age at implantation (ideally before 12 months)

Earlier age at implantation, ideally within the first 12 months of life, is the strongest predictor of better spoken language and auditory outcomes due to the sensitive period for auditory cortical development.