Language ability in children with pervasive developmental disorder and cochlear implants

Abstract

This study investigated language and speech perception abilities, the method of habilitation, and the progress of four children diagnosed as having pervasive developmental disorder (PDD) who received cochlear implants at our center before acquiring any language ability. A control group of thirteen children with cochlear implants but without any associated developmental disorders was used for comparison. All seventeen children were tested using the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for children (Third Edition) and our original speech perception test immediately prior to their enrollment in elementary school. Individual differences in language and speech perception abilities were observed among the PDD subjects. Half of the PDD subjects had acquired language abilities comparable to the children who enrolled in mainstream elementary schools in the control group. One subject had difficulty acquiring language and speech perception abilities. All the PDD subjects were enrolled in special schools and continued to exhibit social skill disorders. The use of both spoken and signed language was effective for the subjects with PDD.