Cochlear Implant in Patients With Autistic Spectrum Disorder—A Systematic Review

Brazilian Journal of Otorhinolaryngology

da Silva Tavares, F., Azevedo, Y. J., et al. (2021).

Brazilian Journal of Otorhinolaryngology, 87(5), 601-619.

This systematic review investigates the effects of cochlear implantation on hearing, language, and social skills development in individuals on the autism spectrum.

Not stated

Database inception to September 2019

Cohort studies; clinical case studies; case reports

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For children on the autism spectrum and with severe and/or profound hearing loss, seven studies investigating cochlear implantation (CI) outcomes found improvements in auditory development, language, and social interactions compared to pre-implantation assessment. "Not all individuals with [autism spectrum disorder] ASD and associated hearing loss who underwent cochlear implant developed oral communication. However, the intervention demonstrated other benefits such as increasing interaction with family members, establishing eye contact more frequently, and identifying sounds" (p. 605). Children with a comorbidity of ASD showed smaller gains post-CI in comparison to post-CI scores of individuals with only a hearing loss diagnosis. Across all of the studies, 46.3% of participants had an additional disability diagnosis (e.g., cortical blindness, global delay, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, encephalopathy) confounding language and communication development outcomes. Further research targeting family and caregiver perceptions and studies using standardized measures of development for individuals on the autism spectrum and with deafness is needed.