Binaural advantages in using a cochlear implant for adults with profound unilateral hearing loss.

Background: Recent studies of cochlear implants (CIs) in profound unilateral hearing loss (UHL) patients have demonstrated a restoration of some binaural hearing.

Aims/objectives: The objective was to evaluate three possible advantages of binaural hearing in CIs adult users with UHL including single-side deafness (SSD) and asymmetric hearing loss (AHL) subgroups.

Material And Methods: A prospective study was conducted that included 70 sequentially implanted patients.

The hearing benefit of cochlear implantation for individuals with unilateral hearing loss, but no tinnitus.

Conclusion: Cochlear implants improve the hearing abilities of individuals with unilateral hearing loss and no tinnitus. The benefit is no different from that seen in patients with unilateral hearing loss and incapacitating tinnitus.

Objective: To evaluate hearing outcomes after cochlear implantation in individuals with unilateral hearing loss and no tinnitus and compare them to those obtained in a similar group who had incapacitating tinnitus.