Mapping procedures can produce non-centered auditory images in bilateral cochlear implantees

Abstract

Good localization accuracy depends on an auditory spatial map that provides consistent binaural information across frequency and level. This study investigated whether mapping bilateral cochlear implants (CIs) independently contributes to distorted perceptual spatial maps. In a meta-analysis, interaural level differences necessary to perceptually center sound images were calculated for 127 pitch-matched pairs of electrodes; many needed large current adjustments to be perceptually centered. In a separate experiment, lateralization was also found to be inconsistent across levels. These findings suggest that auditory spatial maps are distorted in the mapping process, which likely reduces localization accuracy and target-noise separation in bilateral CIs.