Bonebridge® bone conduction implant. Hearing outcomes and quality of life in patients with conductive/mixed hearing loss

Abstract

Purpose: The aim of this study was to analyze the hearing outcomes and quality of life in a series of 52 patients affected by conductive or mixed hearing loss and treated with Bonebridge^®.

Methods: 52 of 71 patients implanted with Bonebridge^® between October 2012 and January 2022, were included in the study. We compared the air conduction thresholds at the frequencies 500, 1000, 2000, 3000, 4000 Hz, the SRT50% and the World Recognition Score at an intensity of 50 dB with and without the implant. The Abbreviated Profile of Hearing Aid Benefit (APHAB) was employed to assess the quality of life of patients.

Results: The liminal tone audiometry (free field) pure tone average for air conduction after 6 months with the implant was 35.12 dB, obtaining a mean gain of 31.83 dB. With Bonebridge^®, the mean SRT was 34.17 dB, whereas before the surgery no patient achieved 50% of correct answers at a sound intensity of 50 dB. The world recognition score at 50 dB changed from 11% without the implant to 85% with it. We observed one case of implant failure and one case of implant exposure. The APHAB questionnaire showed an improvement after implantation in practically all the subscales.

Conclusions: The hearing outcomes and the subjective benefits reported by patients obtained in our study are similar to those published in the literature. Bonebridge^® represents an excellent method for the rehabilitation of patients with conductive and mixed hearing loss, showing a low rate of complications.

Keywords: Bone conduction; Bone conduction hearing; Bone conduction implants; Bonebridge; Hearing loss.