ABSTRACT
Cochlear implants (CI) have transformed the management of severe to profound hearing loss, particularly in both the very young and elderly. CI is considered in patients with severe to profound hearing losses who are failing to gain sufficient benefit from appropriate and well-fitting hearing aids. The audiological assessment of potential cochlear implant recipients usually includes an auditory brainstem response (ABR) test. This aids in: validating the accuracy of the behavioural responses; detecting a central problem or absent cochlear nerve; and ruling out non-organic hearing loss. The term 'far-advanced otosclerosis (FAO)', first used by House and Sheehy in 1961, is applied to patient with otosclerosis and a profound hearing loss. Such patients may undergo stapedectomy in an attempt to restore their ability to wear hearing aids. Hearing loss in patients with neurofibromatosis type 2 (NF2) may be secondary to bilateral vestibular schwannomas or their treatment. Using modern surgical techniques, it is sometimes possible to excise tumours with preservation of cochlear nerve.
