Cochlear implants: Speech production in prelingually deaf children

Introduction: The development of intelligible speech is a key outcome measure following paediatric cochlear implantation. However, the literature on this subject is extremely limited. Material and methods: A prospective longitudinal study was carried out in 133 prelingually deaf children. Children's speech intelligibility was evaluated using SIR (speech intelligibility rating scale). Children were assigned to one of three age groups, according to age at implantation: group 1 (2 - 4 years), group 2 (4 - 6 years), and group 3 (6 - 8 years). Results: 80% of Group 1 children developed, at the 5-year interval, intelligible speech to listeners with little or no experience to deaf speech. Speech intelligibility was found to be significantly higher in group 1 in comparison with group 2 (p<0.05) and group 3 (p<0.05), whereas there was no significant difference between groups 2 and 3. These results were consistent at all intervals studied. Conclusion: Children implanted under the age of 4 years have a significantly greater chance of developing intelligible speech than those implanted later.