Spiral ganglion neurons (SGNs) participate in the physiological process of hearing by
relaying signals from sensory hair cells to the cochlear nucleus in the brain stem. Loss of
hair cells is a major cause of sensory hearing loss. Prosthetic devices such as cochlear
implants function by bypassing lost hair cells and directly stimulating SGNs electrically,
allowing for restoration of hearing in deaf patients. The performance of these devices
depends on the functionality of SGNs, the implantation procedure and on the distance …