Launching of a cochlear implant program at the Cracow Otolaryngology Clinic

Introduction: It is estimated that hearing impediment affects approximately 12% of the population. Some forms of hearing disorders can be successfully treated conservatively, while in others surgery plays a key role. Often, therapeutic methods are exhausted and the patient faces the decision about the need for acoustic organ prosthesis. Depending on the causes of anomalies, apparatus for air conduction, bone conduction or cochlear implants are used. A cochlear implant replaces the damaged sensory cells of the inner ear. It constitutes an electronic prosthesis of the acoustic organ, composed of two parts. The internal part (implanted in the inner ear) consists of an implant and electrodes, which conduct electrical signals to the cochlea. The external part consists of a microphone, a speech processor, and a transmitter. Care report: A 70-year-old patient with deep hearing loss in the right ear and deafness of the left ear. During the interview, the patient denied mechanical injuries of the head and neck, acoustic trauma, inflammation or otorrhea. Based on the conducted tests, qualification otolaryngology, audiology, and otoneurology, radiology, surdologopedy and psychology were performed for cochlear implant insertion. The patient was qualified for cochlear implantation in the left ear under general anesthesia. The surgical team was composed of dr hab. Maciej Wiatr, prof. dr hab. Kazimierz Niemczyk, prof. dr hab. Jacek Składzień, MD Agnieszka Wiatr with anesthetic monitoring under the supervision of MD Renata Witkowska. The patient was discharged home on day 7 after surgery in good general and local condition. Simultaneous rehabilitation was started at the Center for Daily Rehabilitation of Hearing and Speech at the Specialist Center of Diagnosis and Rehabilitation for Children and Adolescents with Hearing Disabilities of the Polish Association of the Deaf in Cracow.