Datalogging Findings in Adult Cochlear Implant Recipients Who Never Developed Intelligible Speech.

Background:: The aim was to evaluate the usage patterns of adult cochlear implant recipients with a history of pre-lingual or peri-lingual acquired deafness and poor speech intelligibility.

Methods:: A retrospective chart review of all patients meeting inclusion criteria within the patient cohort of the auditory implant centre of the University College London Hospitals was conducted. Outcome measurements included sound processor daily usage and speech perception scores postimplantation.

Cochlear implant outcomes in patients with Meniere's disease: a large case series.

Objective: To perform a matched cohort study to assess whether patients with Meniere's Disease (MD) require more intensive auditory rehabilitation following cochlear implantation (CI) and identify factors that may affect outcomes in patients with MD.

Methods: A retrospective case review was performed. MD and control patients were matched for age, biological sex, implant manufacturer and electrode design.

Home energy efficiency and radon: An observational study.

Exposure to radon gas is the second leading cause of lung cancer worldwide behind smoking. Changing the energy characteristics of a dwelling can influence both its thermal and ventilative properties, which can affect indoor air quality. This study uses radon measurements made in 470 689 UK homes between 1980 and 2015, linked to dwelling information contained within the Home Energy Efficiency Database (HEED).

Outcomes in implanted teenagers who do not meet the adult candidacy criteria.

Severe to profoundly deaf adults who score 50% or over on the Bamford-Kowal-Bench (BKB) sentence test currently cannot obtain NHS funding for a cochlear implant according to the NICE guidelines (NICE Technical Appraisal Guidance (TAG166), 2009. Cochlear implants for children and adults with severe to profound deafness. NICE technology appraisal guidance [TAG166].

Outdoor wood furnaces create significant indoor particulate pollution in neighboring homes.

Context: The use of outdoor wood furnaces (OWFs) is common in many parts of the United States. Little published information exists on the concentrations of outdoor and indoor fine particulates found near OWFs.

Objective: To compare PM2.

Cochlear implant programming: a global survey on the state of the art.

The programming of CIs is essential for good performance. However, no Good Clinical Practice guidelines exist. This paper reports on the results of an inventory of the current practice worldwide.

Variable long-term outcomes from cochlear implantation in children with hypoplastic auditory nerves.

This paper describes the outcomes in six children with hypoplastic cochlear nerves, demonstrated on magnetic resonance imaging who were selected for implantation because they had clear responses to sound, with hearing aids. In four of the six children the internal auditory canals were abnormally narrow; however in the remaining two the internal auditory canals were of normal width. After activation of their devices, all six children had auditory thresholds within the normal range for implanted congenitally deaf children.

Coordinating outcomes measurement in ataxia research: do some widely used generic rating scales tick the boxes?

The objective of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of four widely used generic health status measures in Friedreich's ataxia (FA), to determine their suitability as outcome measures. Fifty-six people with genetically confirmed FA completed the Barthel Index (BI), General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12), EuroQol (EQ-5D), and Medical Outcomes Study 36-item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) by means of postal survey. Six psychometric properties (data quality, scaling assumptions, acceptability, reliability, validity, and responsiveness) were examined.

Antioxidant treatment of patients with Friedreich ataxia: four-year follow-up.

Background: Decreased mitochondrial respiratory chain function and increased oxidative stress have been implicated in the pathogenesis of Friedreich ataxia (FRDA), raising the possibility that energy enhancement and antioxidant therapies may be an effective treatment.

Objective: To evaluate the long-term efficacy of a combined antioxidant and mitochondrial enhancement therapy on the bioenergetics and clinical course of FRDA.

Design: Open-labeled pilot trial over 47 months.