Medical, surgical and audiological complications of the first 100 adult cochlear implant patients in Birmingham

Abstract

Of the first 100 patients implanted on the Midland Cochlear Implant Programme the commonest aetiologies of deafness were idiopathic 31 per cent, meningitis 28 per cent and cochlear otosclerosis 16 per cent.The major complication rate was three per cent. The most severe was one individual who post-operatively developed a cerebral infarct and subsequently died. The minor complication rate was 39 per cent, all of which successfully resolved, and included 11 cases of wound infection, nine cases of vertigo, three transient facial palsies and two post-operative bleeds.Older patients and men were most likely to have a post-operative medical complication. Women were more likely to have an abnormal electrode insertion. Meningitis and otosclerosis were the most complicated aetiologies in terms of cochlear ossification and electrode insertion. A non-patient cochlea was associated with fewer active electrodes. In six cases which had been reported pre-operatively as showing patent cochleas, some form of obstructional ossification was encountered. Patients functioning with greater than 15 active electrodes performed better on auditory tests than patients with fewer than 15 active electrodes.

Bacterial infection complications in children with cochlear implants in the Czech Republic

“…The incidence of wound infection has been published over a broad range of between a few percent to 11% [21,22]. The majority of published studies classify wound infections under the category of lesser complications [22,23].…”

“…The majority of published studies classify wound infections under the category of lesser complications [22,23]. Each wound infection, however, must be very carefully considered, because it may lead to tissue dehiscence and subsequent explantation.…”

Periorbital Ecchymosis: An Uncommon Complication of Cochlear Implantation

“…After the entire required test showed no any surgical contraindication. Patient performed right ear cochlear implantation via facial recess approach [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10]. Intraoperative ART and NRT showed values with in normal range C-arm X-ray imaging showed electrode arrays implanted with in cochlea (Figure 2).…”

Magnet displacement: a rare complication following cochlear implantation

“…Early major complications include facial nerve paralysis, incorrect electrode placement, and wound infection. There are also late complications such as flap problems, device malfunction or infection of the middle ear cleft to name a few [1][2][3]. Recently a new complication after cochlear implantation has been described, the so called magnet migration [4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12].…”