Vibrant Soundbridge^® in preschool children with unilateral aural atresia: acceptance and benefit

The aim of this pilot study was to determine the acceptance and benefit from the middle ear implant system Vibrant Soundbridge^® (VSB, MED-EL Corporation, Austria) by means of a questionnaire, compared to a previously used conventional bone conducting hearing device, in preschool children with unilateral congenital aural atresia. Prospective cohort study. All nine children with unilateral congenital aural atresia used the VSB and had previous experience with a bone conducting hearing device. The benefit from the VSB was evaluated by questionnaires concerning acceptance of hearing aids, handling, listening effort, behavior, quality of life, and the duration of daily use and compared to the experience with the bone conducting hearing device. In addition, to quantify the benefit from the VSB use, audiological assessment (pure-tone audiometry via free field testing, speech audiometry, and localization test) was performed with and without VSB. The questionnaires and audiological test results were compared pairwise. According to all questionnaire areas, children benefited significantly more from the VSB compared to bone conducting hearing device (ps <.05). The most important finding was a significant increase in daily use from 2 h for the bone conducting hearing device to 10 h for the VSB. Children performed significantly better with the VSB than without it in the audiological assessment. Children with unilateral aural atresia benefited significantly more from the VSB compared to a conventional bone conducting hearing device according to the parents’ questionnaires and yielded better results in the audiometry and localization test with the VSB than without it.