Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Cochlear Implant According to Age of Implantation

Resumen

Hearing loss in pediatric population is a major health concern, taking into account the immediaterepercussions on the cognitive, emotional and language development, resulting in serious difficulties incommunication and language development. Therefore, many institutions and official bodies emphasizethe importance of its early diagnosis and implantation. The objective of this study is to know the effectof cochlear implant on the development of oral language in implanted children in the Province of SantaCruz de Tenerife (Canary Islands) according to age of implantation. Study of the psycholinguistic profileof children who are implanted between 2011 and 2013 (n= 28) through the use of two standardized tests,Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test and TheIllinois Test of Psycholinguistic Abilities (ITPA). 18%of thechildren were implanted under two years of age, 26% between two and three years old and 56% overthree years of age. There is a significant tendency to use the visual channel in the communication ofthose children who were implanted at a later age and a tendency to use the auditory channel at an earlyage of implantation. A later age of implantation implies a risk in the normal language development bothat a level of language comprehension and expression. Children who are implanted at an early ageshowed both at a level of language comprehension and expression better results than those childrenwho were implanted at a later age. Most of the cases studied were implanted at a later age. Thissituation leads them to a nonfunctional use of the implant and a limited development of their speakingskills.