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CC BY 4.0 · Int Arch Otorhinolaryngol 2024; 28(03): e517-e522
DOI: 10.1055/s-0044-1785205
Original Research

Functional Language in Children from a Public Cochlear Implant Program in a Developing Country

Alice Lang Silva 
1   School of Medicine, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
2   Division of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
,
Anderson Claudio Roberto 
1   School of Medicine, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
,
Maithe Antonello Ramos 
1   School of Medicine, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
,
Debora Milene Ferreira Alves 
1   School of Medicine, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
,
Isadora Martins Silva Stumpf 
2   Division of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
,
Laura Prolla Lacroix 
1   School of Medicine, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
,
Letícia Petersen Schmidt Rosito 
1   School of Medicine, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
2   Division of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
› Author Affiliations Funding The authors declare that they have received no funding from agencies in the public, private or non-profit sectors for the conduction of the present study.
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Abstract

Introduction The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that ∼ 32 million children worldwide are affected by hearing loss (HL). Cochlear implant is the first-line treatment for severe to profound sensorineural HL. It is considered one of the most successful prostheses developed to date.

Objective To evaluate the oral language development of pediatric patients with prelingual deafness implanted in a reference hospital for the treatment of HL in southern Brazil.

Methods We conducted a retrospective cohort study with a review of medical records of patients undergoing cochlear implant surgery between January 2009 and December 2018. Language development was assessed by reviewing consultations with speech therapy professionals from the cochlear implant group.

Results A total of 152 children were included in the study. The mean age at cochlear implant surgery was of 41 months (standard deviation [SD]: ± 15). The patients were divided into six groups considering the type of language most used in their daily lives. We found that 36% of children use oral language as their primary form of communication. In a subanalysis, we observed that patients with developed or developing oral language had undergone cochlear implant surgery earlier than patients using Brazilian Sign Language (Língua Brasileira de Sinais, LIBRAS, in Portuguese) or those without developed language.

Conclusion The cochlear implant is a state-of-the-art technology that enables the re-establishment of the sense of hearing and the development of oral language. However, language development is a complex process known to present a critical period to properly occur. We still see many patients receiving late diagnosis and treatment, which implies a delay and, often, the impossibility of developing oral communication.

Level of Evidence Level 3 (cohort study).

Keywords

prelingual deafness - cochlear implants - language development - sign language


Publication History

Received: 28 June 2022

Accepted: 30 January 2024

Article published online:
25 May 2024

© 2024. The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

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