Dr Andrea Warner-Czyz, Assistant Professor in communication disorders, School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences, UT Dallas, USA.
Cochlear implant clinicians and scientists from around the world gathered in June for the annual clinical research conference of the American Cochlear Implant Alliance. The organisation’s mission is to eliminate barriers to cochlear implantation through research, awareness and advocacy.
Attendees presented on emerging high-priority topics such as robotics, telehealth, congenital CMV, fully implantable hearing aids, disparities in provision of services, and serving patients with diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds. Special sessions also explored adult and paediatric (re)habilitation. I particularly enjoyed sessions that highlighted ways we can enhance our services to patients across the lifespan by addressing disparities in cochlear implant care and by focusing on the benefits of coordination and collaboration across an array of health professionals.
Attendees interacted with industry and nonprofit representatives in the interactive exhibit hall.
Dr Peter Roland, Professor Emeritus of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at UT Southwestern Medical Center, received the Lifetime Achievement Award for his work in advancing the use and benefits of cochlear implants. A student poster competition also recognised exemplary student research. The winners were Hannah Dunn (AuD, Yale Hearing and Balance Center) for ‘“Vestibular Weakness in Cochlear Implant Recipients’; Samir Gouin (BS, McGill University) for ‘Identifying Auditory Emotion Bio-Markers in Cochlear Implant Users with Machine Learning’; and Darla McDonald (MEd, BS, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine) for ‘Effectiveness of Modified Map Settings to Reduce Perceived Tinnitus Severity’.
The conference launched three member-initiated Special Interest Groups (SIGs) for student mentorship, hearing health professionals with hearing loss, and adult rehabilitation post-implantation. These SIGs represent the start of an important effort to create a platform for professionals to collaborate throughout the year as well as at the ACI Alliance annual conference.
Next year ACI Alliance will host CI2024: 17th International Conference on Cochlear Implants and Other Implantable Technologies from 10-13 July 2024, in Vancouver, British Columbia in Canada. This international conference, hosted by the US every four years, provides an opportunity to address global challenges relative to provision of cochlear implant services including the impact on early implantation of children born during the COVID pandemic, working with challenging cases through teamwork, improving cochlear implant access to underserved populations around the world, and promoting cochlear implantation through hearing health. Abstract submissions will open in August 2023.
Resources from CI2023 Dallas will be available on the ACI Alliance website.
