Permanent single-sided deafness (SSD) is a common problem that leads to neural changes within auditory cortex (AC) in the form of cross-modal plasticity whereby AC neurons that formerly encoded acoustic information instead encode somatosensory and/or visual stimuli, or they show increasing preference for acoustic stimulation from the intact, only-hearing ear. The timing and interplay of these two elements of AC plasticity in adult-onset SSD before and after cochlear implantation (CI), the only definitive rehabilitation for SSD, have not been well-characterized and pose a vital gap in knowledge in the field, as effective CI speech recognition and sound localization are contingent upon effective AC neural circuits. The overall objective of this project is to investigate how the duration of SSD interacts with neural measures of cross-modal plasticity and the only-hearing ear regulation of AC neurons pre- and post-CI, and how these measures relate to real-world CI speech recognition and sound localization performance.
Publications
Changing Management of Intravestibular Schwannomas in the Era of Cochlear Implantation for Single-Sided Deafness. Hershey E, Chionis L, Kazemi R, Valenzuela C, El-Kashlan HK, Basura GJ, Stucken EZ. Otol Neurotol. 2024 Apr 1;45(4):e337-e341. doi: 10.1097/MAO.0000000000004140. Epub 2024 Feb 15. PMID: 38361345.
Human central auditory plasticity: A review of functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to measure cochlear implant performance and tinnitus perception. Basura GJ, Hu XS, Juan JS, Tessier AM, Kovelman I. Laryngoscope Investig Otolaryngol. 2018 Oct 18;3(6):463-472. doi: 10.1002/lio2.185. PMID: 30599031; PMCID: PMC6302720.
Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Brain Imaging Investigation of Phonological Awareness and Passage Comprehension Abilities in Adult Recipients of Cochlear Implants. Bisconti S, Shulkin M, Hu X, Basura GJ, Kileny PR, Kovelman I. J Speech Lang Hear Res. 2016 Apr 1;59(2):239-53. doi: 10.1044/2015_JSLHR-L-14-0278. PMID: 26535956.
Transcanal labyrinthectomy for intractable vertigo after unilateral cochlear implantation. Heidenreich KD, Basura GJ, Zwolan TA, El-Kashlan HK, Telian SA. Otol Neurotol. 2011 Oct;32(8):1270-2. doi: 10.1097/MAO.0b013e31822e0e73. PMID: 21921856.
Bilateral cochlear implantation: current concepts, indications, and results. Laryngoscope. Basura GJ, Eapen R, Buchman CA. 2009 Dec;119(12):2395-401. doi: 10.1002/lary.20751. PMID: 19894280.