Objective: Investigation of long-term satisfaction and correlation with audiometric measurements after osseointegrated bone-conduction device (OBCD) surgery for patients with single-sided deafness (SSD).
Patients: Thirty-six patients implanted with an OBCD for SSD.
Study design: Retrospective review in a university medical center.
Intervention: Rehabilitative. The patients were implanted after a test with an OBCD worn on a headband during 15 days in a daily use. The patients were implanted if the test gave us satisfaction.
Main outcome measures: A series of audiometric tests, including speech perception in noise, prosthetic gain, and sound localization measurements, with and without OBCD on headband before surgery and on the transcutaneous implant remote from the surgery. Assessment of benefit and satisfaction using the modified Entific Medical System Questionnaire (EMSQ), the Abbreviated Profile of Hearing Aid Benefit (APHAB), and the Glasgow Benefit Index (GBI).
Results: The mean follow-up is 2.2 years. Approximately 64% of the patients use their OBCD more than 8 hours per day and 82% more than 4 hours per day. Mean satisfaction score is 7.3/10. The APHAB and GBI show a significant benefit (APHAB ease of communication before and after implantation, +21; GBI total score, +17). These results show an improvement in speech perception in noise with the OBCD, but no differences between the preoperative and postoperative tests. There is no improvement in sound localization. A high level of satisfaction is correlated with good results on the pre operative speech perception in noise.
Conclusion: The OBCD is an effective way of rehabilitation for SSD. The BAHA improves the speech perception in noise but provided no significant improvement in sound localization as revealed in the postoperative test. With 3 questionnaires we noticed an improvement in the quality of life with the OBCD.