Publications by authors named "Marco D Caversaccio"

Background: Cochlear implants (CI) provide individuals with severe sensorineural hearing loss the opportunity for artificial auditory perception. The standardized documentation of speech intelligibility tests is widespread, while the systematic capture of patient-related outcome measures (PROMs) remains inconsistent.

Methodology: Relevant PROM instruments were evaluated and selected based on the criteria of dissemination, clarity, and relevance, integrated into routine clinical practice, and tested at longitudinal time points.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the video Head Impulse Test (vHIT) in diagnosing vestibular strokes in patients presenting with acute vestibular syndrome in the emergency department.
  • Out of 76 patients tested, 24 were confirmed to have vestibular strokes, with the vHIT showing an accuracy of 86.8% based on vestibulo-ocular reflex gain compared to lower accuracy from saccade metrics.
  • While the vestibulo-ocular reflex gain proved to be the most accurate, saccade metrics still offered valuable diagnostic insights, though automated detection methods need improvement to match expert analysis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Our study aims to provide basic insights on the impact of the spiral shape of the cochlea, i.e., of geometric torsion and curvature, on wall pressure and wall shear stress.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objectives: To assess the prevalence of new hearing losses in patients with acute vestibular syndrome (AVS) and to start to evaluate its diagnostic value for the differentiation between peripheral and central causes.

Design: We performed a cross-sectional prospective study in AVS patients presenting to our Emergency Department (ED) from February 2015 to November 2020. All patients received an MRI, Head-impulse test, Nystagmus test and Test of skew ('HINTS'), caloric testing and a pure-tone audiometry.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • - This study compared two methods—auditory brainstem response (ABR) and extracochlear electrocochleography (ECochG)—to evaluate the effectiveness of floating mass transducer (FMT) placement in active middle ear implant (AMEI) surgery for patients with mixed hearing loss.
  • - 15 patients underwent AMEI implantation, and results showed that ABR successfully assessed coupling efficiency in all cases, whereas ECochG was effective in only eight, indicating that ABR is more reliable and robust.
  • - The research concluded that ABR provides more accurate predictions of coupling efficiency and is preferable for optimizing FMT placement during surgery, offering useful data for future clinical applications.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Intracochlear electrocochleography (ECochG) is increasingly being used to measure residual inner ear function in cochlear implant (CI) recipients. ECochG signals reflect the state of the inner ear and can be measured during implantation and post-operatively. The aim of our study was to apply an objective deep learning (DL)-based algorithm to assess the reproducibility of longitudinally recorded ECochG signals, compare them with audiometric hearing thresholds, and identify signal patterns and tonotopic behavior.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: Otospongiotic plaques can be seen on conventional computed tomography (CT) as focal lesions around the cochlea. However, the resolution remains insufficient to enable evaluation of intracochlear damage. MicroCT technology provides resolution at the single micron level, offering an exceptional amplified view of the otosclerotic cochlea.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: With the advent of cochlear implants, tactile aids for the profoundly deaf became obsolete decades ago. Nevertheless, they might still be useful in rare cases. We report the case of a 25-year-old woman with Bosley-Salih-Alorainy Syndrome and bilateral cochlear aplasia.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objectives: We aimed to determine the frequency of vestibular syndromes, diagnoses, diagnostic errors and resources used in patients with dizziness in the emergency department (ED).

Design: Retrospective cross-sectional study.

Setting: Tertiary referral hospital.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Strong magnetic fields can cause dizziness and related symptoms due to their influence on the inner ear's balance mechanisms, a phenomenon known as magnetic vestibular stimulation (MVS).
  • Researchers have created a specialized setup within a 7T MRI scanner to study how these strong magnetic fields affect eye movements (nystagmus) and cognitive responses by adjusting participants' head positions.
  • Understanding MVS may aid clinical research on vestibular disorders and provide insights into how balance information interacts with cognitive functions, particularly in contexts where sensory information may conflict.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: Measuring the Vestibular-Ocular-Reflex (VOR) gains with the video head impulse test (vHIT) allows for accurate discrimination between peripheral and central causes of acute vestibular syndrome (AVS). In this study, we sought to investigate whether the accuracy of artificial intelligence (AI) based vestibular stroke classification applied in unprocessed vHIT data is comparable to VOR gain classification.

Methods: We performed a prospective study from July 2015 until April 2020 on all patients presenting at the emergency department (ED) with signs of an AVS.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • A study was conducted to assess the effectiveness of a video-based test called vHINTS for diagnosing strokes in patients with acute vestibular syndrome (AVS), comparing it to traditional expert evaluations.
  • The research included 46 patients with AVS and found that vHINTS had a high accuracy of 94.2%, outperforming expert evaluations, which had an accuracy of 88.3%.
  • The study concluded that vHINTS is a more reliable method for detecting strokes, especially highlighting the challenges in evaluating nystagmus direction during the tests.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Superior canal dehiscence syndrome (SCDS) is a structural bony defect of the roof of the superior semi-circular canal into the middle cranial fossa and is responsible for the creation of a third window, which alters the dynamics of the inner ear. During humming, vibratory waves entering the vestibulum and cochlea are re-routed through the dehiscence, leading to stimulation of the otolithic and ampullary vestibular organs. This is responsible for the torsional-vertical nystagmus known as "fremitus nystagmus".

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: In individuals with severe hearing loss, mobile phone communication is limited despite treatment with a cochlear implant (CI). The goal of this study is to identify the best communication practice for CI users by comparing speech comprehension of conventional mobile phone (GSM) calls, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) calls, and the application of a wireless phone clip (WPC) accessory.

Methods: This study included 13 individuals (mean age 47.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The microscopic transcanal (aka transmeatal) surgical approach was first described in the 60s, offering a minimally invasive means of reaching the external auditory canal, the middle ear, and epitympanon. Such an approach avoids a retroauricular or endaural skin incision; however, working through a narrow space needs angled microsurgical instruments and specific training in otologic surgery. The transcanal approach restricts the working space; however, it offers a binocular microscopic vision into the middle ear without extended skin incisions and thus, reducing post-operative pain and bleeding.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: The use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is often limited in patients with auditory implants because of the presence of metallic components and magnets. The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical usefulness of a customized MRI sequence for metal artifact suppression in patients with BONEBRIDGETM BCI 602 implants (MED-EL, Innsbruck, Austria), the successor of the BCI 601 model.

Methods: Using our in-house developed and customized metal artifact reduction sequence (SEMAC-VAT WARP), MRI artifacts were evaluated qualitatively and quantitatively.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: To evaluate the audiological and subjective benefit from hearing rehabilitation with an active bone conduction implant in subjects with single-sided sensorineural deafness (SSD).

Study Design: Prospective, multicenter, single-subject repeated measures.

Setting: Tertiary referral center, five clinics in Germany and Switzerland.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: The alternate cover test (ACT) in patients with acute vestibular syndrome is part of the 'HINTS' battery test. Although quantitative, the ACT is highly dependent on the examiner's experience and could theoretically vary greatly between examiners. In this study, we sought to validate an automated video-oculography (VOG) system based on eye tracking and dedicated glasses.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study investigates skew deviation, a symptom of acute vestibular syndrome (AVS), and its relationship with vertical diplopia and vestibular pathways dysfunction.
  • Data was collected from patients in an emergency department over five years, using clinical assessments and video tests, followed by MRI to confirm strokes.
  • Findings reveal a notable prevalence of skew deviation in patients with AVS, challenging previous beliefs about its rarity, and suggest that while video tests can help quantify skew, they offer limited diagnostic value compared to other established tests.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: Cold and warm water ear irrigation, also known as bithermal caloric testing, has been considered for over 100 years the 'Gold Standard' for the detection of peripheral vestibular hypofunction. Its discovery was awarded a Nobel Prize. We aimed to investigate the diagnostic accuracy of Caloric Testing when compared to the video head impulse test (vHIT) in differentiating between vestibular neuritis and vestibular strokes in acute dizziness.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: Gaze-evoked nystagmus (GEN) is a central sign in patients with the acute vestibular syndrome (AVS); however, discriminating between a pathological and a physiologic GEN is a challenge. Here we evaluate GEN in patients with AVS.

Methods: In this prospective cross-sectional study, we used video-oculography (VOG) to compare GEN in the light (target at 15° eccentric) in 64 healthy subjects with 47 patients seen in the emergency department (ED) who had AVS; 35 with vestibular neuritis and 12 with stroke.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: Failure of fixation suppression of spontaneous nystagmus is sometimes seen in patients with vestibular strokes involving the cerebellum or brainstem; however, the accuracy of this test for the discrimination between peripheral and central causes in patients with an acute vestibular syndrome (AVS) is unknown.

Methods: Patients with AVS were screened and recruited (convenience sample) as part of a prospective cross-sectional study in the emergency department between 2015 and 2020. All patients received neuroimaging, which served as a reference standard.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background And Purpose: A peripheral spontaneous nystagmus (SN) is typically enhanced or revealed by removing fixation. Conversely, failure of fixation suppression of SN is usually a sign of a central disorder. Based on Luebke and Robinson (Vision Res 1988, vol.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Cough from an allergological as well as from the ENT aspect Cough is a common problem in the allergological, but less so in the rhinological consultation. The differential diagnostic spectrum for cough is extensive and may range from rhinitis and asthma to eosinophilic esophagitis and rarer diseases. In the case of chronic cough (> 2 months), the four most frequent causes must be sought, or be excluded (upper airway cough syndrome, asthma [cough-variant-asthma], non-asthmatic eosinophilic bronchitis, gastroesophageal reflux disease).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF