Can Mandarin-speaking prelingual deaf adults benefit from cochlear implant?

Abstract

Background

With advances in cochlear implant (CI) technology, prelingual deaf adults may experience improved speech perception and quality of life (QoL). It is still a challenge for Mandarin-speaking CI user with tone recognition due to CI technology focused on intonation language.

Objectives

To evaluate the long-term post-CI auditory performance and social-emotional benefits in prelingual deaf Mandarin-speaking adults and the difference between them and post-lingual deaf adults.

Material and Methods

Fifty-five adult implanted ears were included (forty-six postlingual deaf group; nine prelingual deaf group). Post-CI long-term outcomes were using vowels, consonants, disyllabic words, Mandarin monosyllable words, categories of audiology performance, speech intelligibility rating, subjective social-emotional questionnaires.

Results

Post-CI auditory performance and speech intelligibility of prelingual deafness adults was significantly inferior to that of those with postlingual deafness. However, both groups presented improved social-emotional benefits, with no significant difference between both groups.

Conclusions

Adult CI recipients who deaf before the age of 4 can experience benefits in social-emotional life functioning, regardless of their limited auditory performance and speech intelligibility. Therefore, prelingual Mandarin-speaking deaf adults, especially those using oral communication, can be considered as relative indications for cochlear implantation.

Significance

To clarify and validate the benefits among Mandarin-speaking prelingual deaf adult recipients.

Chinese Abstract

背景

随着人工耳蜗 (CI) 技术的进步, 语前耳聋成人可能会经历言语感知和生活质量 (QoL) 的改善。由于主攻声调语言的 CI 技术, 对于普通话 CI使用者来说实现声调识别仍然是一个挑战。

目的

评估语前聋哑普通话成人 CI 后的长期听觉表现和社会-情感益处, 并评估他们与语后聋哑成人的区别。

材料和方法

纳入 55 个成人植入耳(语后聋人组 46 个；语前聋人组九个)。 CI 后的长期结果是使用元音、辅音、双音节单词、普通话单音节单词、听力学表现类别、语音清晰度等级、主观社会情感问卷。

结果

语前耳聋成人的 CI 后听觉表现和言语清晰度明显低于语后耳聋患者。 然而, 两组均提出社会情感效益得到改善, 两组之间没有显着差异。

结论

4 岁之前失聪的成年 CI 接受者可以在社交情感方面受益, 尽管他们的听觉表现和言语清晰度有限, 但他们的生活仍在正常运转。 所以, 可以将语前讲普通话的耳聋成人, 特别是那些使用口头交流的耳聋成人, 看作人工耳蜗植入的相对指征。

意义

澄清和验证普通话语前耳聋成人CL接受者的获益。

Keywords:

• Cochlear implant
• prelingual deaf adult
• long-term deafness
• auditory performance
• speech intelligibility
• social-emotional benefits

Acknowledgements

We are grateful for Miss Mei-Chi Chiu for her collection of subjects testing raw data and ZI JI ZHONG LIMITED support the study manpower for handling cases.

Ethics approval

The study was approved by the MacKay Memorial Hospital institutional review board (IRB no:21MMHIS164e).

Authors’ contributions

Po-Kai Huang: conceptualization, formal analysis, investigation, methodology, writing-original draft, writing-review & editing.

Pei-Hsuan Ho: conceptualization, formal analysis, investigation, methodology, writing-original draft, writing-review & editing.

Chia-Huei Chu: conceptualization, formal analysis, methodology, writing-review & editing.

Pey-Yu Chen: conceptualization, formal analysis, methodology, writing-review & editing.

Hung-Ching Lin: conceptualization, investigation, methodology, supervision, writing review & editing.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.