Cochlear implant failure due to unexpected absence of the eighth nerve--a cautionary tale.
We present a case of bilateral absence of the eighth cranial nerve in the internal auditory meatus (IAM). This caused total failure of responses after cochlear implantation in a six-year-old patient with congenital deafness. Pre-operative magnetic resonance (MR) imaging is important to show not only the anatomy of the middle and inner ears but also the structures in the IAM.
East of England Cochlear Implant Centre, Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge, UK.
R F
RF
Gray
J
J
Ray
D M
DM
Baguley
Z
Z
Vanat
J
J
Begg
P D
PD
Phelps
D002648:Child; D019929:Cochlear Implantation; D005260:Female; D006319:Hearing Loss, Sensorineural / Q000151:congenital* / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D017211:Treatment Failure; D000159:Vestibulocochlear Nerve / Q000002:abnormalities* / Q000473:pathology