Influence of electrode to cochlear duct length ratio on post-operative speech understanding outcomes

• Published in: Cochlear implants international Vol. 23; no. 2; pp. 59 - 69
• Main Authors: Cooperman, Shayna P., Aaron, Ksenia A., Fouad, Ayman, Tran, Emma, Blevins, Nikolas H., Fitzgerald, Matthew B.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Taylor & Francis 04.03.2022
• Subjects: Adult; Cochlear Duct; Cochlear implant; Cochlear Implantation - methods; Cochlear Implants; Electrode Array; Electrode Insertion; Humans; Med-El; OTOPLAN; Retrospective Studies; Speech; Speech Perception; Speech Recognition; Treatment Outcome; Cochlear implant; OTOPLAN; Speech Recognition; Med-El; Electrode Array; Electrode Insertion
• ISSN: 1467-0100; 1754-7628
• DOI: 10.1080/14670100.2021.1979289

To assess whether the pre-operative electrode to cochlear duct length ratio (ECDLR), is associated with post-operative speech recognition outcomes. A retrospective chart review study. Tertiary referral center. The study included sixty-one adult CI recipients with a pre-operative computed tomography scan and a speech recognition test 12 months after implantation. The average of two raters' cochlear duct length (CDL) measurements and the length of the recipient's cochlear implant electrode array formed the basis for the electrode-to-cochlear duct length ratio (ECLDR). Speech recognition tests were compared as a function of ECDLR and electrode array length itself. The relationship between ECDLR and percent correct on speech recognition tests. A second order polynomial regression relating ECDLR to percent correct on the CNC words speech recognition test was statistically significant, as was a fourth order polynomial regression for the AzBio Quiet test. In contrast, there was no statistically significant relationship between speech recognition scores and electrode array length. ECDLR values can be statistically associated to speech-recognition outcomes. However, these ECDLR values cannot be predicted by the electrode length alone, and must include a measure of CDL.