Three different central auditory skills were compared and evaluated in 56 blind and 40 sighted subjects. The study consisted of three experiments conducted in three subgroups. Experiment A was performed in order to evaluate the localization function; experiment B for the temporal auditory resolution ability of the blind adult, and experiment C to test the ability of the blind person to discriminate speech material in noise. In all three experiments the blind subjects obtained significantly better results than the sighted subjects. From these results it was concluded that there is supporting evidence of a certain superiority of the blind individual with regard to central auditory function.

To assess the outcome and risk factors for failure of pneumatic retinopexy (PR) in eyes with primary rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD).Methods: Data of patients who underwent PR for the repair of primary RRD, from January 1, 2000, through June 30, 2011, were retrieved from medical records and retrospectively analyzed. Patients with a follow-up time of less than 4 months were contacted and invited for examination. Patients with less than 2 months of follow-up were excluded. Successful cases (attached retina at 2 months after the PR) were compared with failures. A subgroup analysis was performed comparing successful and failed cases of RRD that were reattached with only 1 additional operation.Results: Two hundred seventy-six eyes (271 patients) underwent PR during the study period, of which 258 eyes (93.5%) were included in the study. Mean (SD) fol-low-up time was 36.1 (39.4) months; only 23 eyes (8.9%) had a follow-up of less than 4 months. Successful reattachment at 2 months was achieved in 171 eyes (66.3%). Sixty-seven eyes (77.0% of the failed cases) were reattached with only 1 additional operation and final anatomical success was achieved in 256 eyes (99.2%). Successful cases had significantly better final vision (P=.002) and fewer postoperative complications (PՅ.026). However, nonsignificant differences were found between the primary failure PR cases that underwent only 1 additional operation and the successful cases (P Ն.073).Conclusions: Pneumatic retinopexy is a good surgical option for primary RRD. Most cases of primary failure are reattached with 1 additional procedure and have excellent final vision.

In cochlear implant candidates, the presence of a third window could cause an ABG because of stapes motion-induced shunting of acoustic energy outside the cochlear duct in response to air-conducted stimuli while bone conduction is preserved.

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