Automatic segmentation of intra-cochlear anatomy in post-implantation CT

Abstract

A cochlear implant (CI) is a neural prosthetic device that restores hearing by directly stimulating the auditory nerve with an electrode array. In CI surgery, the surgeon threads the electrode array into the cochlea, blind to internal structures. We have recently developed algorithms for determining the position of CI electrodes relative to intra-cochlear anatomy using pre- and post-implantation CT. We are currently using this approach to develop a CI programming assistance system that uses knowledge of electrode position to determine a patient-customized CI sound processing strategy. However, this approach cannot be used for the majority of CI users because the cochlea is obscured by image artifacts produced by CI electrodes and acquisition of pre-implantation CT is not universal. In this study we propose an approach that extends our techniques so that intra-cochlear anatomy can be segmented for CI users for which pre-implantation CT was not acquired. The approach achieves automatic segmentation of intra-cochlear anatomy in post-implantation CT by exploiting intra-subject symmetry in cochlear anatomy across ears. We validated our approach on a dataset of 10 ears in which both pre- and post-implantation CTs were available. Our approach results in mean and maximum segmentation errors of 0.27 and 0.62 mm, respectively. This result suggests that our automatic segmentation approach is accurate enough for developing customized CI sound processing strategies for unilateral CI patients based solely on postimplantation CT scans.