Given that today's cochlear implant (CI) candidates frequently present with substantial residual low-frequency hearing, the preservation of residual hearing is becoming an increasingly crucial but as yet inadequately resolved aspect of CI surgery....
✦ The floor
Discussion
Signed responses from readers of the wire.
No actionable change — this is a preclinical animal study; near-infrared light therapy for residual hearing preservation is not ready for clinical application.
Hearing preservation after cochlear implantation is a high clinical priority, and near-infrared light therapy represents a novel, non-pharmacological approach to protecting spiral ganglion neurons that warrants follow-up human research.
- 01Near-infrared light applied to the cochlea preserved residual hearing in an animal cochlear implant surgery model.
- 02Spiral ganglion neurons — the nerve cells that transmit sound signals to the brain — were better protected with light treatment.
- 03Published in Audiology & Neurotology (2026); animal (preclinical) study only.
- 04No pharmacological agents were used; the intervention is purely light-based.
- 05Human translation would require safety and efficacy trials before clinical use.
Near-infrared light exposure preserves residual hearing after cochlear implant surgery in an animal model.
studysupportedNear-infrared light protects spiral ganglion neurons from damage during cochlear implantation.
studysupported- PMID
- 42623318
- DOI
- 10.1159/000551198.
- Journal
- Audiology & Neurotology
- Publication type
- research_article
- Evidence level
- 4
- Population
- Animal model of cochlear implant surgery
- Intervention
- Near-infrared light exposure to the cochlea following cochlear implant surgery
- Comparator
- Animals not receiving near-infrared light treatment
Primary outcomes
Residual hearing preservation (auditory thresholds); Spiral ganglion neuron survival/density