cochlear implant

cochlear implant, electrical device inserted surgically into the human ear that enables the detection of sound in persons with severe hearing impairment. The cochlea is a coiled sensory structure in the inner ear that plays a fundamental role in hearing. It is innervated by the cochlear nerve, which branches from the larger vestibulocochlear nerve and serves as the primary fibre for the relay of electrical impulses carrying information about sound from the external environment to the auditory nucleus, or sound-processing centre, of the brain. Cochlear implants are most often used in adults affected by profound sensorineural deafness (hearing loss caused by damage to or congenital deformity of the inner ear), although children with this form of deafness who do not benefit from external hearing aids may also be candidates for cochlear implantation.

Modern cochlear implants have both external and internal components. External parts include a microphone, the tip of which rests just above the external auditory canal; a sound processor, which organizes sound detected by the microphone; and a transmitter, which consists of an electrical coil held in place by a magnet and conducts information via electromagnetic induction or radio frequency from the processor to a receiver/stimulator that lies beneath the skin. The receiver/stimulator is anchored in the temporal bone and is one of the two primary internal components of the cochlear device, the second being an electrode array that is implanted along the cochlear nerve fibre. The receiver/stimulator converts transmitter signals into electrical impulses, which are relayed along a cable to the electrode array. This mechanism of impulse conduction mimics the normal function of the cochlear nerve by stimulating nerve fibres that lead to the auditory nucleus.

Many patients with cochlear implants experience immediate improvements in hearing, and those who benefit most rapidly tend to be adults who lost their hearing after having already developed extensive language and speech skills. Young children who undergo intense therapy following implantation often make substantial gains in speech recognition and in their ability to discern different types of sound, including loud and soft sounds. Some individuals with cochlear implants eventually can even understand speech without lip reading. However, not all patients benefit to this extent, and a few actually may experience a complete loss of hearing in the affected ear as a result of the implantation procedure or the presence of the implant itself. Other side effects associated with the procedure or the device include infection, numbness around the ear, tinnitus (a constant ringing or buzzing noise in the ears), implant failure, and injury to the facial nerve, which runs through the temporal bone and passes close to the vestibulocochlear nerve. Surgical implantation of a cochlear device requires general anesthesia.

The first successful implantation of electrodes capable of stimulating the auditory nucleus was reported in 1957 by French otolaryngologists André Djourno and Charles Eyriès, who embedded electrodes near the cochlear nerve of a patient who was suffering from a condition known as cholesteatoma (the growth of a cyst in the middle ear that results in hearing loss). Later refinements in cochlear implant technologies led to the development of multichannel electrode arrays, which enable patients to sense different frequencies of complex sounds and to recognize speech patterns. Of particular significance was the multichannel implant technology invented by Australian physician Graeme Clark.

Advances in electrode technologies and device materials have reduced the risk of infection associated with cochlear implants. In addition, reductions in the sizes of external parts have given newer devices a relatively discreet appearance, although in young children the microphone and transmitter are often conspicuous. Despite these vast improvements in cochlear implant technology, however, the long-term effects of the electrodes on the nerves and function of the auditory nucleus remain unknown.