Cochlear Implant Outcomes in Prelingually Deafened Adults with and without Sound Deprivation: Are There Differences in Quality of Life?

Abstract

Background Indications for cochlear implantation (CI) are constantly being updated, and with them, the audiometric results achieved by patients. Patient satisfaction should always be considered, even in patients with lower audiological results. The aim of the present study was to compare quality of life (QoL), self-perceived hearing benefit, and audiometric results between prelingually and postlingually deafened patients, with and without sound deprivation, after CI. Material/Methods The sample included 46 patients with bilateral sensorineural hearing loss: 22 postlingually deafened and 24 prelingually deafened, further subdivided into sound-deprived (n=10) and non-sound-deprived (n=14). Auditory performance was evaluated with pure tone audiometry, speech recognition scores (SRS), and self-perceived hearing benefit, whereas QoL was evaluated with 2 self-reported questionnaires (Comprehensive Cochlear Implant Questionnaire and World Health Organization Quality of Life-BREF). Results Audiometric results were worse in the prelingually deafened than in the postlingually deafened group, and worse in the prelingually deafened patients with sound deprivation. There was no marked difference in perceived CI benefit or QoL between the 2 groups or within the 2 prelingually deafened subgroups. No correlation was found between SRS and duration of CI use or between QoL and SRS in the prelingually and postlingually deafened groups. Conclusions Our findings demonstrate better auditory performance for the postlingually deafened group and no differences in perceived QoL or benefit of CI between the groups. The sound-deprived patients had equal scores on the perceived QoL questionnaire. These analyses suggest that sound-deprived, prelingually deafened patients may benefit from CI.

Speech Perception and Quality-of-Life Outcomes in Mandarin-Speaking Postlingual Deaf Adults With Cochlear Implant: Any Difference With the Intonation Language Users?

“…Therefore, we concluded that vowel recognition instead of monosyllable words hase potential to predict social-emotional functions in Mandarin-speaking adult CI recipients. However, Canale et al (26) reported that disyllabic words were significantly negatively correlated with the World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQOL) questionnaire scores, in contrast to our results. We speculate that the WHOQOL questionnaire is a generic QoL scale; therefore, it may have poor sensitivity for CI users.…”

Cochlear Implant Results in Older Adults with Post-Lingual Deafness: The Role of “Top-Down” Neurocognitive Mechanisms

“…While some authors only describe audiological performances worsening in noisy conditions [44], others describe a general worsening of vocal recognition as age increases [47]. Nevertheless, cochlear implantation has no age limitations, due to the significant improvement in life quality reported by implanted elderly patients [48][49][50].…”

The path to the profession of the teacher of the deaf in the context of the quality of life of the perilingually deaf woman using a cochlear implant since adulthood – a case study

“…Jednakże trudno jest ocenić skalę tego zjawiska. [20] oraz czy jest to głuchota/ ubytek słuchu w stopniu głębokim czy głuchota częściowa [24].…”