Q. WHAT IS VESTIBULAR IMPLANT? WHERE IS IT KEPT AND HOW DOES IT WORK?
- Vestibular implant is a new electronic implant designed to artificially restore the vestibular function in patients with bilateral vestibular loss by providing the CNS with motion information using electrical stimulation of the vestibular nerve.
- It measures the head movement and stimulate the vestibular nerve in the inner ear.
- Vestibular implant is inserted under the skin behind the ear and into the inner ear via surgery similar in cochlear implantation. During the first 4 months of the surgery the device will be activated and then deactivated.
- The Vestibular implant has 4 components:
- Electrical stimulator
- Three extra-cochlear electrodes that are placed in the ampulae of each SCC and
- Intra-cochlear array
When it is turned on, trains of electrical stimulation in the form of charge balance biphasic pulse are delivered down each extra-cochlear electrode toward the respective vestibular nerve . Ultimately the electrical stimulation would restore balance by stabilizing the gaze via VOR.