Treated large posterior fossa vestibular schwannoma and meningioma: Hearing outcome and willingness-to-accept brain implant for unilateral deafness

Background/objectiveTo compare functional hearing and tinnitus outcomes in treated large (~ 3 cm) vestibular schwannoma (VS) and posterior fossa meningioma cohorts, and construct willingness-to-accept profiles for an experimental brain implant to treat unilateral hearing loss.MethodsA two-way MANOVA model with two independent variables (tumor type; time from treatment) and three dependent variables (hearing effort of tumor ear; abbreviated Speech, Spatial, and Qualities of Hearing scale (SSQ12); Tinnitus Functional Index (TFI)) was used to analyze data from VS (N=32) and meningioma (N=50) patients who were treated at a tertiary care center between 2010 and 2020. A query to probe acceptance of experimental treatment for hearing loss relative to expected benefit was used to construct willingness-to-accept profiles.ResultsTumor type was statistically significant on the combined dependent variables analysis (F[3, 76]=19.172, p 2 years) (p ≤ .017). At the 60% speech understanding level, 77% of respondents would accept an experimental brain implant.ConclusionHearing outcome is better for posterior fossa meningioma compared to VS. Most patients with hearing loss in the tumor ear would consider a brain implant if the benefit level would be comparable to a cochlear implant.Level of evidence2.