Comparative results with different cochlear implants.

The cochlear implant program in Budapest began in 1985, since when 60 operations have been performed, 14 of them on children (51 primary procedures and 9 reimplantations). Different devices and also different techniques have been used: extracochlear promontory, extracochlear round window and intracochlear implants. Various speech processors were applied; at first a digital pulsatile sound-encoding system, later on analog processors were used, while processors operating on the basis of the CIS strategy are preferred nowadays. The operations were performed on both pre- and postlingual patients. In several cases contralateral hearing improvement was observed 6 months after the operation. Considerable experience has been gained of unique cases, such as a deaf-blind prelingual child and prelingual twins. Evaluating cochlear implant performance, in addition to the usual audiological tests measuring postoperative speech understanding, warble tone sound field thresholds were also established.

[Cochlear implants]. / A cochlearis implantáció.

Cochlear implantation is a method of utmost importance recently employed in ear surgery. It makes even speech understanding possible with electrical stimulation of the inner ear in case of bilateral total deafness of cochlear origin. The authors have performed cochlear implantation for 10 years at the Ear-Nose and Throat Clinic of Semmelweis University. Since 1985 different implantation techniques have been used in case of 58 patients, both adults and children. The authors give account of of technical details, rapidly changing selection criteria and the call attention to the problems of peri- and postoperative period and rehabilitation, on they basis of their own results. Importance of team-work of the ear-surgeon, audiologist, psychologist, physicist and speech-therapist is emphasized, because success of the operation is based on proper selection, skillful operating techniques and postoperative rehabilitation, as well.