Problems Associated with Cochlear Implants in Hearing-Impaired Children with Additional Disabilities

Abstract

The effectiveness of cochlear implantation in hearing-impaired children with additional disability is still controversial. In this study, we report the effect of pre-operative developmental delay on post-operative speech performance and the effectiveness of cochlear implantation in profound hearing-impaired patients with pervasive developmental disorders. The cognitive-adaptive developmental quotient evaluated using the Kyoto Scale for Psychological Development showed significant correlation with the post-operative language-social developmental quotient. Although it showed a positive correlation with intelligibility of consonant-vowel syllables and phrases, the correlation coefficient was small. The speech intelligibility test showed diverse results in cochlear implant recipients with pervasive developmental disorders. On average, they showed slightly lower scores on the speech intelligibility tests. In most cases, patients showed improved response to sounds in daily life, and the families of the patients were satisfied with the cochlear implant. The attitude of patients to their surroundings did not change so much as their response to sounds did.