Meningitis and a safe dexamethasone-eluting intracochlear electrode array.

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the potential risk of pneumococcal meningitis associated with the use of a dexamethasone-eluting intracochlear electrode array as compared with a control array. METHODS: In two phases, adult Hooded-Wistar rats were implanted via the middle ear with an intracochlear array and were inoculated with Streptococcus pneumoniae 5 days post-surgery. Phase I created a dosing curve by implanting five groups (n = 6) with a control array, then inoculating 5 days later with different numbers of S. pneumoniae: 0 CFU, 10(3) CFU, 10(4) CFU, 10(4) CFU repeated, or 10(5) CFU (colony forming units). A target infection rate of 20% was aimed for and 10(4) CFU was the closest to this target..