The Effectiveness of Early Cochlear Implantation for Infants and Young Children with Hearing Loss
New Zealand Health Technology Assessment (NZHTA) Technical Brief
Ali, W., & O'Connell, R. (2007).
New Zealand Health Technology Assessment (NZHTA) Technical Brief, 6(5), i-63.
This technical review examines the effectiveness of early cochlear implantation (before 2 years of age) compared to late cochlear implantation (after 2 years of age or older) on auditory performance, communication abilities, education participation, and quality of life in children with hearing loss.
"There was consensus that, in general, implantation at a younger age improves the effectiveness of cochlear implantation in terms of communication outcomes. Also those children achieved stronger skills after sustained implant use than did children who received the implants more recently" (p. 40). In particular,<ul> <li>Children receiving cochlear implantation (CI) before 24 months of age demonstrate improved auditory and communication outcomes compared to children implanted after 24 months of age.</li> <li>Children who receive a CI after 24 months may develop auditory and communication abilities that eventually reach the same developmental levels as children implanted prior to 24 months.</li> <li>Effectiveness of implantation prior to 12 months of age compared to implantation after 12 months of age are unclear, and the harms/benefits of surgery at this younger age must be considered.</li> <li>Long-term outcomes in the areas of educational attainment or quality of life are lacking evidence at this time.</li></ul>
