DR Mariam Alkandari, Consultant audiovestibular physician,
Dr Mutlaq Alsihan, consultant Otorhinolaryngology
Fahad Almethen, chief audiologist,
Joby Abraham, Senior specialist audiologist.
Case Report Magnet displacement in a cochlear implanted patient Serious complication
Abstract:
Cochlear implant operations can end up with a number of complications, one of which, is the internal magnet displacement. The cochlear implanted devices can be affected by radiological procedures, mainly the MRI. MRI is a magnetic resonance imaging, a radiological procedure using strong magnet fields, magnetic field gradients, and radio-waves to form images of the organs in the body. The devices include magnetic part being implanted under the skin and the magnet of the external part of the processor as well, in order to facilitate the radiofrequency transmission of the processing sound to the auditory brain centers. Exposure of the patients who had been already underwent the cochlear implant operation to the MRI procedure is very risky, which can lead to severe pain and the high possibility of extrusion of the implanted device. Therefore, it is very important to instruct the patients not to go through radiological procedure for any reason except after contacting the specialist to avoid side effect like extrusion of the magnets or the electrodes, which may need later either replacement of the magnet or reimplanting the whole device after explanting the older one. Although, the devices supposed to be compatible with 1.5 up to 3 Tesla MRI, but it is very important to inform the specialist before going through the procedure for the safety of the patient.
Key words: Hearing loss, cochlear implant, MRI.
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