Curvature Characterization of Cochlea Using CT-Based Ear Atlas and 3D Slicer Software

In 2010, the IBGE Census found that at least 9.7 million people were deaf in Brazil. From these, around twenty-two percent had severe hearing loss. The Cochlear Implant is a procedure that aims to restore one’s hearing ability through the insertion of a set of electrodes into the cochlea. Due to the complexity of this surgical procedure, the Cochlear Implant has given rise to extensive development in computational simulation. Believing it to be possible to improve results, we sought support in the literature of Yu et al. (J Laryngol Otol 129(11):1085 (2015), [6]), in the article: curvature measurement of human bilateral cochleae. This study implements Yu et al. (J Laryngol Otol 129(11):1085 (2015), [6]) cochlear curvature measurements through a free visualization and medical imaging processing platform using markers to generate a curvature map. SPL Ear Atlas was applied as a model for the curvature mapping, three regions of interest with greater curvature were observed for basal turn and apex turn, and two for middle turn. In conclusion, this study shows gradual growth of the curvature towards the apical loop, in accordance to literature. This gradual increase of the curvature emphasizes the need to characterize morphological structures in order to avoid potential damage due to the insertion of the electrode array.