title: Hearing preservation in cochlear implant surgery.
abstract: In the past, it was thought that hearing loss patients with residual low-frequency hearing would not be good candidates for cochlear implantation since insertion was expected to induce inner ear trauma. Recent advances in electrode design and surgical techniques have made the preservation of residual low-frequency hearing achievable and desirable. The importance of preserving residual low-frequency hearing cannot be underestimated in light of the added benefit of hearing in noisy atmospheres and in music quality. The concept of electrical and acoustic stimulation involves electrically stimulating the nonfunctional, high-frequency region of the cochlea with a cochlear implant and applying a hearing aid in the low-frequency range. The principle of preserving low-frequency hearing by a "soft surgery" cochlear implantation could also be useful to the population of children who might profit from regenerative hair cell therapy in the future. Main aspects of low-frequency hearing preservation surgery are discussed in this review: its brief history, electrode design, principles and advantages of electric-acoustic stimulation, surgical technique, and further implications of this new treatment possibility for hearing impaired patients.
authors.affiliation: Brasília University Hospital, Hospital Universitário de Brasília-HUB, SGAN 605, Avenida L2 Norte, 70830-200 Brasília, DF, Brazil.
authors.forename: Priscila Carvalho
authors.identifier: 0000-0001-6725-0088
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Miranda
authors.affiliation: Brasília University Hospital, Hospital Universitário de Brasília-HUB, SGAN 605, Avenida L2 Norte, 70830-200 Brasília, DF, Brazil ; Universidade de Brasília (UnB), Campus Universitário Darcy Ribeiro, 70910-900 Brasília, DF, Brazil.
authors.forename: André Luiz Lopes
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Sampaio
authors.affiliation: Brasília University Hospital, Hospital Universitário de Brasília-HUB, SGAN 605, Avenida L2 Norte, 70830-200 Brasília, DF, Brazil.
authors.forename: Rafaela Aquino Fernandes
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Lopes
authors.affiliation: Brasília University Hospital, Hospital Universitário de Brasília-HUB, SGAN 605, Avenida L2 Norte, 70830-200 Brasília, DF, Brazil ; Universidade de Brasília (UnB), Campus Universitário Darcy Ribeiro, 70910-900 Brasília, DF, Brazil.
authors.forename: Alessandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ramos Venosa
authors.affiliation: Brasília University Hospital, Hospital Universitário de Brasília-HUB, SGAN 605, Avenida L2 Norte, 70830-200 Brasília, DF, Brazil ; Universidade de Brasília (UnB), Campus Universitário Darcy Ribeiro, 70910-900 Brasília, DF, Brazil.
authors.forename: Carlos Augusto Costa Pires
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: de Oliveira