How Effective Is Auditory–Verbal Therapy (AVT) for Building Language Development of Children with Cochlear Implants? A Systematic Review

Abstract

This systematic review sheds light on the effectiveness of auditory–verbal therapy (AVT) outcomes in children with cochlear implants (CIs). The presented outcome is based on research findings from the last 10 years. The systematic review was designed based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines and Critical Appraisal of Treatment Evidence (CATE) checklist. Specific keywords were chosen based on the research question and searched on the PubMed database. All searched papers were analysed based on specific exclusion criteria and classified into four evidence levels. The results revealed that children who participated in AV therapy can achieve linguistic skills at the same level as their hearing peers. Voice quality seemed positively affected, placing young children with CIs in the normal range for receptive vocabulary development. In contrast, reading skills seemed less benefited. AV therapy seems to contribute to integration into mainstream society. Despite the recorded speech and language improvements of young children with CIs, the aim of AV therapy is still not fulfilled. AV therapy can be seen as the best clinical practice for young children with CIs till now, but the lack of well-controlled studies is undermining.

Children with hearing impairment and early cochlear implant: A pragmatic assessment

“…Our results support findings from previous studies ( Guerzoni et al., 2016 ; Nicastri et al., 2014 ) providing a more comprehensive evaluation of pragmatics. Globally considered, the existing research suggest that along with early prosthesis, and early verbal and speech rehabilitation ( Binos et al., 2021 ), specialists could also enrich interventions to include programs specifically focused on pragmatic abilities. Indeed, a previous research has shown that the Auditory-Verbal Therapy does not provide a direct effect in improving pragmatic development ( Toe et al., 2016 ).…”

Exploring The New Rehabilitation Model of Hearing Impaired Children from the Perspective of Family

“…For example, the problems involved in the research on the application of auditory oral method are still focused on the one-way teaching and guidance of professionals for hearing-impaired children and families. AVT can be seen as a tool for CI children to catch up with their NH peers, but future studies need to clarify many weaknesses in the process of evidence and validity 12 .…”

Benefits of Parent Training in the Rehabilitation of Deaf or Hard of Hearing Children of Hearing Parents: A Systematic Review

“…which was scored 0 ("no"), 1 ("partially") or 2 ("yes"). The total maximum score was 28, with the study quality rated as excellent (26)(27)(28), good (20)(21)(22)(23)(24)(25), fair (15)(16)(17)(18)(19) or poor (≤14) [35].…”

“…Studies on the efficacy of an AVT parent-centered approach are increasing, and a recent systematic review [ 27 ] concluded that retrospective and longitudinal studies revealed statistically significant improvements in both expressive language and auditory comprehension for children involved in AVT programs compared with other traditional approaches, such as total communication, bilingual-bicultural or auditory-oral methods. Limitations in the quality of the published studies, however, make the results difficult to generalize.…”

“…None of the published studies had an experimental design with participants’ randomization, and most of them did not report on the statistical power of their results. Potential cost–benefit advantages were not mentioned nor was the level of evidence rated from IIa to IIb [ 27 ].…”