Evaluation of Auditory Verbal Performance of Pediatric CI Users with Inner Ear Malformations

Abstract

Background: Cochlear implant can be applied to individuals with both normal and abnormal inner ear anatomy, but it may be contraindicated for individuals with some abnormal inner ear anatomy (e.g. labyrinthine aplasia). Individuals with inner ear malformations such as IP-II, IP-I, cochlear hypoplasia, or common cavity may benefit optimally from cochlear implant similarly to individuals with normal inner ear anatomy. Although auditory input is similar, it remains unclear how auditory verbal performance develops in individuals with inner ear malformations. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine the auditory verbal performance of cochlear implant users with inner ear malformations.Methods: A total of 32 cochlear implant users, 15 with inner ear malformations and 17 with normal cochlear anatomy, aged 3-12 years, were included in the study. The Turkish version of the ''Parents' Evaluation of Aural/Oral Performance of Children'' questionnaire was used to examine the auditory verbal performance of the participants. Additionally, the factors affecting auditory verbal performance in inner ear malformations were also investigated.Results: No significant difference was found in the subtest scores of ''Quiet'', ''Noise'' and ''Total'' between cochlear implant users with normal anatomy and those with inner ear malformations (p&gt;0.05). A significant difference was found in the subtest scores of ''Quiet'' between unilateral cochlear implant users with normal anatomy and those with inner ear malformations (p=0.04). No significant difference was found in any subtest scores between unilateral and bilateral cochlear implant users with inner ear malformations (p&gt;0.05).Conclusions: Many studies have shown that the use of cochlear implants at an early age in children with hearing loss has a significant effect on many developmental areas such as listening skills, speech intelligibility, learning skills, speech and language development. Despite the inner ear malformation, the fact that the subtest results of these individuals are similar to normal anatomy shows us that auditory verbal performance is independent of anatomy. The effect of anatomy on auditory verbal performance is especially evident in quiet conditions and in the case of unilateral cochlear implant use.</p