Diagnostic challenges and safety considerations in cochlear implantation under the age of 12 months

Infants versus older children fitted with cochlear implants: Performance over 10 years

“…In addition to experienced pediatric surgeons and anesthesiologists, the team should include an experienced pediatric audiologist and pediatric neuroradiologist to achieve the proper diagnoses, treatment and rehabilitation. The risks of cochlear implantation under 12 months of age are minimal in the hands of experienced pediatric surgeons and anesthesiologists [22,39,42]. Restoration of hearing in infants by cochlear implantation shows beneficial effects auditory, language and cognitive development and should be undertaken as soon as a diagnosis of profound deafness can be confirmed.…”

Anesthetic complications in pediatric patients undergoing cochlear implantation

“…2,3 In the last few years, anesthetic issues have been of significant concern in pediatric cochlear implantation, especially with the recent focus on performing cochlear implantation in infants younger than 1 year old. 4 A cochlear implant is an electronic prosthesis that is used to treat sensorineural hearing loss and has been used to restore the sense of audition in deaf children since the mid-1980s. Congenital or acquired severe to profound loss sustained before the development of language is estimated to occur in between 0.5 and 4.0 per 1,000 births.…”

Estimated net saving to society from cochlear implantation in infants: A preliminary analysis

“…The goal for a congenitally profoundly deaf child is to achieve age‐appropriate spoken language in the shortest possible time frame. Studies have shown more rapid auditory and cognitive development in early implanted children,2–4 and the results demonstrate the safety of CI fitting5, 6 in children younger than 12 months of age. Other authors have reported little difference in outcomes between a small sample of children implanted before 12 months of age and others implanted at later ages 7…”