Med-El Elektromedizinische Geraete Gmbh

Marek Polak

Abdulrahman Abdullah Hagr

Martin Zimmerling

Mathias Kals

Stefan Strahl

Philipp Spitzer

Peter Grasso

Tanja Schulze

Arrangements are described for monitoring cochlear implantation surgery. During surgical insertion of a cochlear implant electrode array into a patient cochlea, at least one measurement difference value is determined for at least one electrode contact currently located at a given insertion depth into the patient cochlea based on comparing current stimulus response data for the at least one electrode contact to prior stimulus response data for at least one prior electrode contact previously located at the given insertion depth. A potential trauma response is identified when the at least one measurement difference value exceeds a defined difference value.

Semiautomated robotic cochlear implant surgery

An inner ear fluid circulation system includes an implantable circulation pump that has a pump inlet and a pump outlet both in fluid communication with inner ear fluid of an implanted patient. The circulation pump is configured to drive the inner ear fluid in from the pump inlet and out through the pump outlet. A pump controller is coupled to the circulation pump and one or more sensing elements for measurement of one or more fluid conditions within the inner ear of the implanted patient, and is configured to control operation of the circulation pump as a function of the measured one or more fluid conditions. Also disclosed is a cochlear implant arrangement and a vestibular implant arrangement comprising such a fluid circulation system.

Apparatus for treatment of meni&#xe8;re's disease

Approaches are described for fitting an implanted cochlear implant having electrode array contacts to an implanted patient. For multiple different fitting methods, each fitting method is assigned one or more electrode contacts wherein no electrode contact is assigned more than one fitting method. For each fitting method, the assigned electrode contacts are fitted according to the fitting method and fitting values for non-assigned electrode contacts are interpolated. Then a fitting is performed for each electrode contact in the electrode array based on a weighted averaging of the fittings for the various different fitting methods.

Fast fitting for cochlear implants

A system and method of fitting an Electric Acoustic Stimulation (EAS) system of a patient that has binaural hearing is provided. The patient has an ipsilateral ear and a contralateral ear opposite the ipsilateral ear, with the EAS system associated with the ipsilateral ear of the patient. Stimulation parameters of the EAS system are developed unilaterally while taking into account hearing abilities of the contralateral ear. The EAS system is configured based on the developed stimulation parameters.

Fitting unilateral electric acoustic stimulation for binaural hearing

Approaches are described for fitting an implanted cochlear implant having electrode array contacts to an implanted patient. For multiple different fitting methods, each fitting method is assigned one or more electrode contacts such that each assigned electrode contact is assigned only one fitting method. For each fitting method, the assigned electrode contacts are fitted according to the fitting method and fitting values for non-assigned electrode contacts are interpolated. Then a fitting is performed for each electrode contact in the electrode array based on a weighted averaging of the fittings for the plurality of different fitting methods.

A sound processing arrangement is described for a patient with a bilateral cochlear implant system having implanted electrode arrays in each ear. There is a left-side sensing microphone and a right-side sensing microphone, each configured for sensing the sound environment surrounding the patient and generating corresponding microphone signals. A sound object identification module is configured for analyzing the microphone signals to identify one or more sound objects within the sound environment. A sound object selection module is configured for processing the microphone signals to generate a sound object signal for each of the one or more sound objects. A stimulation side selector module is configured for selecting on which side or sides of the bilateral cochlear implant arrangement to process each sound object signal. One or more sound processors processes the sound object signals to generate stimulation signals to the implanted electrode arrays on the selected side or sides.

Binaural cochlear implant processing

A hearing signal processor processes an input sound signal and generates an electrical communications signal for an upper range of sound frequencies, and an acoustic communications signal for a lower range of sound frequencies. An implanted electrical stimulation subsystem includes an electrode array with one or more electrode contacts in an acoustically perceivable cochlear region retaining residual natural hearing. The electrical stimulation subsystem receives the electrical communications signal and delivers corresponding electrical stimulation signals to the electrode contacts for electrical stimulation of adjacent neural tissue. An external acoustic stimulation subsystem receives the acoustic communications signal and delivers corresponding amplified acoustic stimulation signals to the ear canal of the patient. The upper range and the lower range overlap and the electrical stimulation signals and the amplified acoustic stimulation signals are coordinated for simultaneous delivery to the acoustically perceivable cochlear region.

Deep electrode insertion fitting in cochlear implant patients with residual hearing

A method of measuring electrically evoked auditory brainstem responses of a patient or animal body is provided. The method includes surgically implanting an auditory prosthesis having an electrode array, the electrode array positioned either intracochlear or substantially proximate a brainstem of the body. At least one electrode is stimulated in the electrode array. Electrically evoked auditory brainstem responses resulting from said stimulation are recorded using, at least in part, an electrode in the electrode array as a negative electrode, and a positive electrode positioned substantially proximate the vertex of the head of the body.

Electrically evoked brainstem response measurements via implant prosthesis

A method is described for adjusting hearing implant operating parameters for electrode contacts in an implantable electrode array to minimize tinnitus in an implanted patient. A channel tinnitus masking stimulation level is measured for each electrode contact at which maximum tinnitus masking occurs, Y. A channel threshold stimulation level also is measured for each electrode contact that represents a lowest detectable stimulation level, T. And a channel maximum stimulation level is measured for each electrode contact that represents a maximum comfortable stimulation level, MCL. Channel threshold stimulation level Tand channel maximum stimulation level MCLare then adjusted for each electrode contact as a function of the channel tinnitus masking stimulation level Yand tinnitus masking stimulation levels for adjacent electrode contacts, Y.

Tinnitus fitting method in CI and ABI patients

A method is described for surgical implantation of a cochlear implant system. An intraoperative baseline value stapedial reflex response is determined for a cochlear implant patient. Then while performing a given step in a multi-step surgical process to implant a cochlear implant system in the patient, the stapedial reflex response is monitored, and if the stapedial reflex response changes from the baseline value response more than a safe change threshold value, the given step is stopped.

Monitoring of hearing preservation during cochlear implant surgery using stapedial reflex measurement

An electric acoustic stimulation (EAS) hearing system includes a signal processor for processing an acoustic signal input to generate: i. an electrical communications signal representative of an upper electrical range of acoustic frequencies, and ii. an acoustic communications signal representative of a lower acoustic range of acoustic frequencies, the acoustic range including: (1) a lower subrange of acoustic frequencies perceivable by the patient with amplification, and (2) an upper subrange of acoustic frequencies not perceivable by the patient, wherein the signal processor uses frequency transposition to include the upper subrange in the lower subrange. An implanted electrical stimulation subsystem receives the electrical communications signal and delivers a corresponding electrical stimulation signal to auditory neural tissue of an implanted patient. An external acoustic stimulation subsystem receives the acoustic communications signal and delivers a corresponding amplified acoustic stimulation signal to the ear canal of the patient.

Transpositional acoustic frequency range in EAS patients

Approaches are described for fitting an implanted cochlear implant having electrode array contacts to the implanted patient. A normal electrode stimulation arrangement is used to deliver electrode stimulation signals to the active electrode channel electrode contacts at an initial common charge level. The common charge level is increased until a desired common percept criteria is met to establish a common baseline charge level for the stimulation electrode contacts. For each individual electrode contact, a fitting stimulation signal is delivered to the electrode starting from the common baseline charge level and the charge level is increased until an individual electrode percept criteria is met.

Fast fitting of cochlear implants

A system and method are described for determining an estimated neural response in a hybrid electric acoustic audio prosthesis. Target nerve tissue such as remaining hair cells and cochlear nerve tissue receive synchronized electric and acoustic stimulation signals which are recorded and processed to determine an artifact canceled estimated neural response.

Growing community of inventors

Innsbruck, Austria

Marek Polak