A survey of pediatric cochlear implant recipients as young adults.

Abstract

To identify the influence of pediatric cochlear implantation on long term communication modality, education, and income.A telephone survey was conducted with 56 young adults who had received cochlear implants (CI) as children. The participants were, on average, 10.6 (SD = 64) when they received their CI and 21 (SD = 2.29) when they participated in this study. All of the participants used a unilateral CI at the time of the survey. Where applicable, survey results were compared to the general population of similar aged individuals in Ontario using chi-squared tests of proportionality.Participants (49/56, 88%) indicated that they used their CI all waking hours and 75% (42/56) reported using spoken language as their primary mode of communication. They attended post-secondary school at higher rates than the general population (χ(1) = 14.35, p < .001); a wide range of study areas were identified with a greater proportion involved in fine arts than the general population (χ(1) = 25.50, p < .001). The rates of employment in this group were below general rates (χ(1) = 21.87, p < .001). However, those who were employed reported salaries similar to their hearing peers.The findings from this study suggest that young adults who received a unilateral CI in childhood typically continue to use their CIs to support spoken language. Their increased rates of post-secondary education are encouraging and they may be choosing unique areas of study. Longer term studies are required to further investigate lower rates of employment in this cohort.