Large acute posttraumatic epidural hematoma centered beneath a cochlear implant: A case report

Cochlear implants provide substantial functional benefit to patients with severe sensorineural hearing loss. Management of acute intracranial hemorrhage adjacent to a functioning cochlear implant presents a unique challenge, requiring a balance between urgent neurosurgical intervention and preservation of implant integrity and auditory function....

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No actionable change for routine audiology practice; however, audiologists and cochlear implant teams should be aware that posttraumatic intracranial bleeding adjacent to an implant is a rare but serious complication requiring urgent neurosurgical coordination.

This case highlights the need for established emergency protocols when cochlear implant recipients sustain significant head trauma, an increasingly important issue as the global implant population grows.

1. 01A large acute epidural hematoma (bleeding between the skull and brain lining) formed directly beneath a cochlear implant following head trauma.
2. 02The patient had pre-existing sensorineural hearing loss (nerve-based hearing loss) managed with the cochlear implant.
3. 03Emergency neurosurgical management had to account for the presence of the functioning implant.
4. 04Case underscores the importance of interdisciplinary communication between audiologists/CI teams and neurosurgeons in trauma settings.
5. 05Published in Surgical Neurology International as a case report.

PMID

42694761

DOI

10.25259/SNI_190_2026.

Journal

Surgical Neurology International

Publication type

case_report

Evidence level

4

Sample size

1

Population

Single patient with sensorineural hearing loss and a functioning cochlear implant who sustained acute head trauma

Intervention

Neurosurgical evacuation of epidural hematoma adjacent to a cochlear implant