Spoken Language Development in Children Following Cochlear Implantation

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Abstract
Young children who experience severe to profound sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) face challenges in developing spoken language because of an inability to detect acoustic-phonetic cues that are essential for speech recognition, even when fitted with traditional amplification devices (hearing aids). More than half of such children are treated with cochlear implantation.1 Cochlear implant systems comprise an externally worn microphone and a microprocessor programmed to extract intensity, frequency, and timing cues from acoustic signals. The system transforms these acoustic cues into an electrical code. Internally, a surgically placed receiver relays the transmitted code to an implanted array of contacts in the cochlea to stimulate surviving auditory neurons.2 With experience, children understand speech, environmental sounds, and music with varying degrees of success.3-6