Abstracts presented at the Otology Section Meetings, Royal Society of Medicine, 3 March 2017, London, UK

s presented at the Otology Section Meetings, Royal Society of Medicine, 3 March 2017, London, UK Matthew Yung short paper prize was awarded to Alistair Mitchell-Innes for ‘Implantable microphones as an alternative to external microphones for cochlear implants’. Implantable microphones as an alternative to external microphones for cochlear implants A Mitchell-Innes From the University Hospital Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust Introduction The potential benefits of a fully implantable cochlear implant include improved cosmesis and comfort, and less restriction of activities. The major challenges facing its development relate to microphones. Microphones can be implanted subcutaneously or in the middle ear. Surface contact and physiological noise are barriers to success for subcutaneous microphones (Briggs et al., 2008; Jenkins and Uhler, 2012). We discuss our series investigating a new middleear microphone. Methods Forty cadaveric dissections were conducted, examining four fixation positions and three coupling options. Outcome measures included sensitivity and simulated body noise. Results We have established the most robust position to optimise microphone sensitivity. Contrary to subcutaneous microphones, our data suggest that a middle-ear microphone will keep body noise to a minimum. Conclusion Positioning implantable microphones in the middle ear avoids surface contact and physiological noise, and potentially takes advantage of directionality cues and amplification provided by the external ear. A clinical trial is planned to establish in vivo microphone performance. Is there an association between single-nucleotide polymorphisms in the RELN gene and sporadic otosclerosis in a British population? A Mowat From the University College London Introduction Otosclerosis displays a complex aetiology influenced by both genetic and environmental factors. A genome-wide association study identified variants within RELN that are associated with the condition (Schrauwen et al., 2009). Follow-up replication studies have reported conflicting results (Khalfallah et al., 2010; Priyadarshi et al., 2010). Aim To establish whether an association exists between two single-nucleotide polymorphisms (rs39399 and rs3914132) in RELN and sporadic otosclerosis cases in a British population. Methods DNA was extracted from saliva and blood samples of patients with a confirmed diagnosis of otosclerosis. All patients had fewer than two relatives with the disease. Sufficient DNA samples were extracted to perform 3 TaqMan assays with 96-well otosclerosis plates.