Verbal Learning and Memory in Early-Implanted, Prelingually Deaf Adolescent and Adult Cochlear Implant Users

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the information-processing strategies of early-implanted, prelingually deaf cochlear implant (CI) users with the California Verbal Learning Test-Second Edition (CVLT-II; Delis, Kramer, Kaplan, & Ober, 2000), a well-established normed measure of verbal learning and memory used in neuropsychological assessments of memory loss. Method: Verbal learning and memory skills were compared in 20 older adolescent and young adult prelingually deaf long-term early-implanted CI users and their 24 normal hearing (NH) peers using the CVLT-II, a widely used multitrial free recall test of verbal learning and memory. Results: On average, CI users recalled fewer words than their NH peers across the immediate, delayed, and cued recall trials of the CVLT-II but were comparable to their NH peers on yes/no recognition memory. CI users showed little evidence of semantic clustering of words during free recall but greater serial clustering compared to their NH peers, suggesting fundamental disturbances in automatic semantic activation of words from long-term memory. No differences were found in verbal memory between CI users and their NH peers on measures of retroactive interference and encoding/retrieval interactions. Performance on the 2nd word list of the CVLT-II (List B) and amount of semantic clustering of words during recall were correlated with sentence recognition in the CI group. Conclusion: Study findings demonstrate significant differences in free recall performance and information-processing strategies that early-implanted, prelingually deaf CI users use to encode, organize, store, and retrieve spoken words in conventional verbal list learning paradigms, compared to their NH peers. Because verbal learning and memory are core foundational processes routinely used in daily functioning for a wide range of neurocognitive and language processing operations, these findings suggest potential domains for assessment and novel interventions to promote the development of optimal outcomes in prelingually deaf early-implanted longterm CI users.

Comparing the Speech Perception of Cochlear Implant Users with Three Different Finnish Speech Intelligibility Tests in Noise

“…These qualities likely contribute to the lower reference value for NH listeners, and also to the lower SRT estimate in our study population. The shortness and simplicity of the test is essential for testing children, since their speech perception in noise is still maturing [19,49], and children with hearing loss may have a shorter auditory memory span [50,51]. Likewise, these qualities might render the test the most reliable SIN measure in the elderly, since ageing and age-related cognitive decline affect the speech perception in noise independently of the hearing level [52][53][54].…”

Bimodal Benefits for Lexical Tone Recognition: An Investigation on Mandarin-speaking Preschoolers with a Cochlear Implant and a Contralateral Hearing Aid

“…The remarkable success of the CI is largely attributable to the proper use of signal transduction technology to harness central auditory plasticity of the implantees [2]. While CI users can significantly benefit from the neuroplasticity driven by the CI-empowered learning experience in developing their auditory, linguistic, and cognitive skills [3][4][5][6][7][8][9], pitch perception poses a unique challenge for these individuals. A vast body of literature demonstrated that CI recipients show deficits in pitch-related perceptual tasks, including voice emotion perception [10][11][12], speech prosody recognition [13][14][15], music appreciation [16][17][18], and lexical tone perception [19][20][21].…”

Examining Delayed Recall in Cochlear Implant Users Using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment, California Verbal Learning Test, Third Edition, and Item Specific Deficit Approach: Preliminary Results

“…Previous literature has examined cognitive performance in relation to hearing abilities for the MoCA (Dupuis et al, 2015;Ambert-Dahan et al, 2017;Lim and Loo, 2018; Significant correlation between each of the trials 1-4 with the ISDA measures except for trial 5 which did not meet significance with Bonferroni correction; α = 0.017. Hillyer et al, 2020;Parada et al, 2020;Shen et al, 2020;Utoomprurkporn et al, 2020) and CVLT-3 (Kramer et al, 2018;Moseley, 2018;Pisoni et al, 2018;Chandramouli et al, 2019), demonstrating that differences in cognitive abilities due to sensory impairments like HL should be taken into account during test administration. Our current findings present the first application of the ISDA to a population with HL.…”

“…Using the California Verbal Learning Test—Third Edition (CVLT-3; Delis et al, 2017 ), a neuropsychological assessment of verbal learning and delayed recall, Pisoni et al (2018) demonstrated more retrieval-induced forgetting of stimuli in delayed recall tasks in experienced CI users compared to those without HL. Additionally, CI users benefited more from semantically cued words than individuals without HL suggesting that semantic cueing allowed individuals with HL to access words that were encoded but not accessible to non-cued retrieval ( Chandramouli et al, 2019 ; Kronenberger and Pisoni, 2019 ). Taken together, the current literature suggest that an impaired retrieval mechanism may underlie delayed recall deficits in individuals with HL.…”

“…Delayed recall tasks appear to present a greater challenge for individuals with HL compared to individuals without HL (Boxtel et al, 2000;Dupuis et al, 2015;Chandramouli et al, 2019). Specifically, performance on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA; Nasreddine et al, 2005), a test used to assess cognitive functioning and screen for MCI and dementia, demonstrated that individuals with HL struggled to recall delayed recall stimuli more frequently than individuals without HL (Dupuis et al, 2015).…”