Work

Towards atraumatic cochlear implant insertion monitoring using a hydraulic-based, cost-effective intracochlear pressure probe

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Purpose: Cochlear implantation is an established treatment for severe sensorineural hearing loss, but residual preoperative hearing is often lost during the surgery, in part due to intracochlear pressure transients that damage cochlear hair cells. To enable real-time monitoring of insertion dynamics, we propose a cost-effective, remote pressure probe for continuous measurement of intracochlear pressure during cochlear implant surgery. Methods: The probe comprises a steel cannula placed at the round window, transmitting intracochlear pressure to a remotely positioned pressure sensor, thereby preserving surgical access. Results: We demonstrated effective pressure transmission across different cannula sizes (between 0.21 and 0.41 mm), validating the probe concept. In an artificial temporal bone model, sensor measurements during cochlear implant insertion showed a strong correlation with reference measurements of intracochlear pressure. Conclusion: We developed and validated a novel, cost-effective, hydraulic probe for atraumatic, real-time monitoring of intracochlear pressure during cochlear implant insertion via a round-window approach. Thereby, the proposed probe offers a feasible, quantitative, directly interpretable metric on cochlear implant insertion.

Source: Frontiers in Surgery

DOI: 10.3389/fsurg.2025.1702151

Authors: Walter Bernardi, Stefan Weder, Georgios Mantokoudis, Marco Caversaccio, Philipp Aebischer

Institutions: University of Bern, University Hospital of Bern

Language: English

Topic: Hearing Loss and Rehabilitation

Subfield: Cognitive Neuroscience

Field: Neuroscience

Domain: Life Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $3,801