Pre-cochlear implant habilitation

Abstract

　　The age at cochlear implant surgery for children with congenital hearing loss has tended to become lower and lower, in Japan as well as around the world. This could be attributable to the introduction of neonatal hearing screening having made it possible to diagnose hearing loss at an early age, and to early cochlear implantation having become established as being of superior benefit for spoken language acquisition. The Japanese pediatric cochlear implant adaptation standard, which used to be 2 years old or older, was revised to 1 and a half years old in 2006, and then to “the adaptation age should be 1 year old or older (weight 8 kg or more) in principle” in 2014. In addition, there are reports from overseas showing the significant effectiveness of cochlear implant surgery performed under the age of one year, and some countries have even removed the age limit from the indication criteria. On the other hand, the period from the discovery of hearing loss in newborn hearing screening to cochlear implant surgery has become shorter, and it seems that the anxiety and burden on parents and nursing institutions are increasing. I think it is meaningful to summarize what should be done from the viewpoint of auditory rehabilitation before cochlear implant surgery.