Chronic electrical stimulation of the auditory nerve at high stimulus rates: A physiological and histopathological study

Abstract

A major factor associated with recent improvements in the clinical performance of cochlear implant patients has been the development of speech-processing strategies based on high stimulation rates. While these processing strategies show clear clinical advantage, we know little of. their long-term safety implications. The present study was designed to evaluate the physiological and histopathological effects of long-term intracochlear electrical stimulation using these high rates. Thirteen normal-hearing adult cats were bilaterally implanted with scala tympani electrode arrays and unilaterally stimulated for periods of up to 2100 h using either two pairs of bipolar or three monopolar stimulati..