A research project currently being undertaken by leading professionals in the field of hearing health, including our own NextSense team members, is the Cochlear Implant Neurotrophin Gene Therapy Trial.

This trial evaluates the safety and efficacy of neurotrophin gene therapy delivered during cochlear implant surgery.

The Cochlear Implant Neurotrophin Gene Therapy Trial (CINGT) comes from extensive studies in animals that showed improvement in performance of cochlear implants when auditory nerve fibres were re-grown towards the implant electrode array.

This is done by delivering small molecules (neurotrophic factors) that enhance the growth and survival potential of neurons to targeted cells in the hearing organ (the cochlea).