The LAURA multichannel cochlear implant in a true Mondini dysplasia.

A congenitally deaf child with bilateral Mondini dysplasias of the inner ear was successfully implanted with a LAURA multichannel cochlear prosthesis. This is the first report of a patient with a Mondini dysplasia in whom a LAURA multichannel cochlear prosthesis was successfully implanted. The cerebrospinal fluid leakage typically occurring after cochleostomy in similar patients was readily controlled, indicating that the deformity present was not a contra-indication for cochlear surgery. The audiological results obtained are described in detail. Since the internal unit of the LAURA prosthesis is very flexible, various speech processing strategies, such as continuous interleaved and phase-locked continuous interleaved strategies, can be tried and evaluated.