The role of age in pediatric cochlear implantation

Objective: To document progress, benefit and importance of age in paediatric cochlear implantation. Design: The EARS (Evaluation of Auditory Responses to Speech) test battery was performed on 33 prelingually deaf children at regular intervals up to 36 months following implantation. All children participated in individually tailored intensive audiological rehabilitation programs after receiving their implants. In this respect, it was attempted to evaluate speech perception scores in children implanted before and after the age of 3 in a homogenous group. Results: All children demonstrated encouraging improvements over time in their speech recognition abilities. Furthermore, it was observed that the children who were implanted under the age of 3 achieved higher levels of speech perception performance. Conclusion: In order to shorten the process of central maturation of the auditory system, it is desirable to implant the children as young as possible. Early intervention seems to be the ideal strategy in enabling prelingually deaf children to derive maximum benefit from cochlear implantation. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.