A study was conducted to compare the new MED-EL TEMPO+ ear-level speech processor with the CIS PRO+ body-worn processor in the COMBI 40/COMBI 40+ implant system. Speech tests were performed in 46 experienced subjects in two test sessions approximately 4 weeks apart. Subjects were switched over from the CIS PRO+ to the TEMPO+ in the first session and used only the TEMPO+ in the time between the two sessions. Speech tests included monosyllabic word tests and sentence tests via the telephone. An adaptive noise method was used to adjust each subject’s scores to approximately 50%. Additionally, subjects had to complete a questionnaire based on their 4 weeks of experience with the TEMPO+. The speech test results showed a statistically significant improvement in the monosyllabic word scores with the TEMPO+. In addition, in the second session, subjects showed a significant improvement when using the telephone with the TEMPO+, indicating some learning in this task. In the questionnaire, the vast majority of subjects found that the TEMPO+ allows equal or better speech understanding and rated the sound quality of the TEMPO+ higher. All these objective and subjective results indicate the superiority of the TEMPO+ and are mainly attributed to a new coding strategy called CIS+ and its implementation in the TEMPO+. In other words, based on the results of this study, it appears that after switching over from the CIS PRO+ to the TEMPO+, subjects are able to maintain or even improve their own speech understanding capability.

Clinical use of rotatory vestibular pendular testing results must be performed using broad stimulus frequency spectra (0.01-0.06 Hz). This method must be used in preoperative examination before labyrinth surgery as well as in estimating individual tolerance for vestibular stimulation in daily situations.

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Cochlear reimplantation in cases of traumatic or atraumatic device failure is a safe procedure without any serious perioperative complications. The timely reimplantation leads to a continuous development of speech perception.

) shows an improved stability of the device and a higher rate of stimulation in comparison to former generations of cochlear implants. The increased number of channels allows higher pulsatile rates and creates the possibility of measuring objective parameters such as electric field imaging (EFI) and neural response imaging (NRI). Study designWe examined 23 patients with pre-and post-lingual deafness who received the new CII Bionic Ear System between March and September 2001, and compared the results with those of 31 patients fitted with the Clarion CI HiFocus System. The criteria for comparison were the intra-and postoperative impedances, the energy consumption, the postsurgical complications and the results of speech tests after three and six months respectively. All patients received the device monaurally after a standardized procedure of pre-operative examinations. In all cases the CII electrode array was inserted with the Clarion positioner system, which is no longer in use.Our study group comprised 16 children with pre-lingual deafness and seven adults with post-lingual deafness; 15 female and eight male patients. The time of follow-up was nine months after the date of operation. ResultsThe mean age of the patients with pre-lingual deafness was 5 years, the mean age of the adults was 51 years. The youngest patient was 2 years of age at the time of operation, the oldest 76 years.