Development of a Micro-coil Based Cochlear Implant

基于微线圈的人工耳蜗的开发

• 批准号: 10658004
• 负责人: JULIE G Arenberg
• 金额: $ 55.38万
• 依托单位: MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2023-04-15 至 2028-03-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10658004
• 关键词: Acoustics; Agreement; Anatomy; Animal Model; Animals; Auditory; Auditory Brainstem Responses; Auditory Physiology; Axon; Biological; Biophysics; Brain; Cavia; Chronic; Clinical; Cochlea; Cochlear Implants; Collaborations; Complex; Computer Models; Development; Devices; Ear; Effectiveness; Electric Stimulation; Electrodes; Electrophysiology (science); Environment; Euthanasia; Evaluation; Eye; Foundations; Frequencies; General Hospitals; Goals; Hearing; Human; Implant; Inferior Colliculus; Investigation; Kinetics; Knowledge; Location; Magnetism; Maxwell' s equations; Measures; Mediating; Modeling; Morphology; Mus; Music; Nature; Neurons; Noise; Outcome; Pattern; Performance; Perilymph; Peripheral; Permeability; Phase; Physics; Physiological; Property; Pulse Rates; Rehabilitation therapy; Scala Tympani; Signal Transduction; Site; Specificity; Speech; Speech Discrimination; Speech Perception; Stimulus; Technology; Testing; Time; Tissues; Work; cohort; deaf; design; experience; guinea pig model; implantation; improved; magnetic field; member; multidisciplinary; neuronal cell body; neurotransmission; next generation; response; simulation; spiral ganglion; transmission process

We have been evaluating magnetic stimulation from tiny, implantable coils (referred to as microcoils) for use in a next-generation cochlear implant (CI). Existing CIs enable speech discrimination, but their effectiveness decreases when background noise levels are high, and most users cannot appreciate music. While a number of factors are thought to contribute to these limitations, it is generally agreed that complex auditory signals, such as those arising from speech in the presence of background noise, or music, require more independent spectral channels than are created by existing, electrode-based CIs. Increasing the number of channels has proven challenging however, as the highly conductive solution surrounding implants (perilymph) expands the spread of activation from each electrode so that fields from neighboring electrodes overlap and channels are no longer independent. The spread of fields is worsened because the targets of stimulation (spiral ganglion neurons) are within one of the bony cavities of the cochlea and thus higher stimulus levels are required for activation which lead to increased current spread. Microcoils may be an attractive alternative to electrodes because the physics governing the spread of induced fields (Maxwell’s equations) suggests narrower confinement of activation. Further, the high permeability of biological tissues to magnetic fields allows stimulation to pass readily through the bony wall, without the need for increased stimulation levels (and the resulting spread of activation). Consistent with this, stimulation from micro-coils implanted in the cochleae of both mice (Lee et al., 2022) and guinea pig (present proposal) results in narrow channels of activation in the inferior colliculus, i.e., better approximating the normal physiological signal, and smaller than those from electrodes. The ability to create narrow spectral channels suggests a larger number of independent channels are possible with microcoils and thus the potential exists for improved rehabilitation of hearing. Our goal here is to further evaluate the potential of microcoils for use in CIs. The Aims focus on (1) electrophysiological evaluation of implanted microcoils, (2) evaluation of the interactions between neighboring channels on the multi-coil array, (3) chronic testing of coil-based implants, and (4) development of a computer model to help understand the mechanism(s) of activation. All physiological testing will take place in guinea pigs, a well- established animal model for evaluation of CI performance; our team has previous experience with this animal and new preliminary results validate the overall viability of our device and the approach. Our multi-disciplinary team has strong expertise in microcoil design and development, magnetic stimulation, computer modeling, cochlear implants and auditory physiology. Almost all of the team is located at Mass. General Hospital or next door at Mass. Eye and Ear; the results presented here are the result of a 2+ year collaboration between team members.

我们一直在评估来自微小的可植入线圈(称为微线圈)的磁刺激，用于 下一代人工耳蜗(CI)。现有的CI允许言语歧视，但它们的有效性 当背景噪音水平较高，并且大多数用户无法欣赏音乐时，音量会降低。而一个数字 许多因素被认为是造成这些限制的原因，人们普遍认为复杂的听觉信号， 例如在存在背景噪音或音乐的情况下由语音产生的声音，需要更多的独立性 光谱通道比现有的基于电极的CI创建的光谱通道更多。增加频道的数量已经 然而，事实证明具有挑战性，因为植入物周围的高传导性溶液(外淋巴)扩大了 从每个电极传播激活，使得来自相邻电极的场重叠并且沟道 不再独立。由于刺激的目标(螺旋神经节)，视野的扩散变得更糟 神经元)位于耳蜗骨的一个腔内，因此需要更高的刺激水平 导致电流扩散增大的激活。微线圈可能是电极的一种有吸引力的替代方案 因为支配感应场传播的物理学(麦克斯韦方程)表明 限制激活。此外，生物组织对磁场的高磁导率允许 刺激容易地穿过骨壁，而不需要增加刺激水平(和 由此产生的激活扩散)。与此一致的是，植入大鼠耳蜗处的微线圈的刺激 小鼠(Lee等人，2022)和豚鼠(目前的提议)都导致了狭窄的激活通道。 下丘，即更接近正常生理信号，并且比来自 电极。创建窄光谱通道的能力意味着有更多的独立通道 使用微线圈是可能的，因此存在改善听力康复的潜力。我们的目标是 以进一步评估微线圈在顺时针中使用的潜力。目标集中在(1)电生理学 评估植入的微线圈，(2)评估相邻通道之间的相互作用 多线圈阵列，(3)线圈植入物的慢性测试，以及(4)开发计算机模型以帮助 了解激活的机制(S)。所有的生理测试都将在豚鼠身上进行，一口井- 建立了用于评估CI性能的动物模型；我们的团队以前有过这种动物的经验 新的初步结果验证了我们的装置和方法的总体可行性。我们的多学科 团队在微线圈设计和开发、磁刺激、计算机建模、 人工耳蜗术和听觉生理学。几乎所有的团队都位于马萨诸塞州。综合医院或下一家医院 弥撒时的门。眼睛和耳朵；这里展示的结果是团队之间两年多合作的结果 会员。