Variability in Receptive Language Development Following Bilateral Cochlear Implantation.

OBJECTIVES: The primary aim was to investigate the variability in language development in children aged 5-7.5 years after bilateral cochlear implantation (CI) up to the age of 2 years, and any impact of the age at implantation and additional noncognitive or anatomical disorders at implantation. DESIGN: Data of 84 congenitally deaf children that had received simultaneous bilateral CI at the age of ≤ 24 months were included in this retrospective study. The results of language comprehension acquisition were evaluated using a standardized German language acquisition test for normal hearing preschoolers and first graders. Data on speech perception of monosyllables and sentences in quiet and noise were added. RESULTS: In a monosyllabic test, the children achieved a median performance of 75.0 ± 12.88%. In the sentence test in quiet, the median performance was 89 ± 12.69%, but dropped to 54 ± 18.92% in noise. A simple analysis showed a significant main effect of age at implantation on monosyllabic word comprehension (p < .001), but no significant effect of comorbidities that lacked cognitive effects (p = .24). Language acquisition values correspond to the normal range of children with normal hearing. Approximately 25% of the variability in the language acquisition tests is due to the outcome of the monosyllabic speech perception test. CONCLUSIONS: Congenitally deaf children who were fitted bilaterally in the 1st year of life can develop age-appropriate language skills by the time they start school. The high variability in the data is partly due to the age of implantation, but additional factors such as cognitive factors (e.g., working memory) are likely to influence the variability.

Multicentre evaluation of music perception in adult users of Advanced Bionics cochlear implants.

OBJECTIVES: To document musical listening and enjoyment in recipients of Advanced Bionics cochlear implants (CIs) and to compare musical perception in those using early coding strategies with subjects using the newer HiRes and HiRes 120 strategies. METHODS: A questionnaire was completed by 136 adult subjects, including questions on the ability to identify specific musical features. The subjects were in three groups: those using early coding strategies (n = 29), HiRes (n = 59), and HiRes 120 (n = 48), and results were compared with a group of 84 normally hearing (NH) subjects. RESULTS: Of the CI users, 79% reported listening to music. The NH group rated listening frequency and enjoyment higher than the CI users. Thirty-five users reported that they sang and this group had significantly higher overall performance. There were no significant differences in overall perception of specific musical features among the strategy groups, though some individual questions showed significantly higher performance in the HiRes 120 users. DISCUSSION: Users of current CI technology show a high level of musical appreciation, though still significantly less than NH subjects. Frequency of listening and enjoyment were significantly correlated and active participation in musical activities, specifically singing, resulted in significantly higher overall performance scores.