Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery
Otolaryngoloy and Head and Neck Surgery – Innovations and Breakthroughs
- Brain activities of patients using cochlear implants and suffering from menigitis-caused blindness and deafness
Professor Hidenori Inohara
Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery
The laboratory has a long history of more than 100 years that can be traced back to 1906 with the founding of the Otolaryngology Department at the Osaka Prefectural Medical School. Otorhinolaryngology covers a wide range of medical fields including dizzyness, hearing loss, nasal and sinus cavities, head and neck tumors, and problems with the voice and swallowing. Our goal is to be a leading in this diverse field.
Brain activities of patients using cochlear implants and suffering from menigitis-caused blindness and deafness
We are implanting cochlear implants as a form of hearing rehabilitation into meningitis patients losing their hearing and sight. One year after the implantation, we are measuring brain activity with H2150-PET. We have found that the auditory areas of both sides of the brain respond to spoken words, suggesting the implants can help recover function of the auditory cortex. On the other hand, when blind and deaf patients read with their fingers, we found a loss of activity in the visual cortex on both sides, which was opposite the results pre-implantation.
