CLINICAL ASPECTS OF VESTIBULAR IMPLANT IN HUMANS

Abstract

Objective: analyze the results obtained in the international literature on the Vestibular Implant, considering the advances regarding surgery and recovery of implanted subjects.

Material and Methods: The electronic search was carried out in Portal of Journals CAPES, in March 2020. The descriptors with the following search strategy were vestibular implant* OR vestibular prosth* OR (electrical stimulation AND vestibular). The selection criteria were studies on vestibular implant surgery, with human beings, in the last ten years, only articles, in English language, peer-reviewed.

Results: Of the 14 selected articles, the majority cited the modified cochlear implants in vestibular implants or hybrid. The most indicated cases are bilateral vestibular loss. About surgical approaches, it can be intralabyrinthine, with insertion of the electrode in the semicircular channel or extralabyrinthine, in which the electrode takes the information directly to the nerves.

Conclusion: The studies report the partial restoration of the vestibulo-ocular reflex electrically evoked that resembles the natural reflex, favoring dynamic visual skills and head movements. There is also reference to other vestibular reflexes, which generate controlled postural responses, as well as vestibular sensations, but still highly variable among the subjects.