Specialists from the University Assistance Complex of Salamanca have carried out a work that concludes that the age of the patient does not condition the improvement of the quality of life after a cochlear implant, as no statistically significant relationship was found between both factors.
The research, presented at the 77th National Congress of the Spanish Society of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery (SEORL-CCC), evaluated the quality of life of 47 cochlear implant recipients.
To measure this aspect, the researchers used the "Nijmegen Cochlear Implant Questionnaire" (NCIQ), a questionnaire that analyzes 60 items linked to basic sound perception, advanced perception, language production, self-confidence, activity limitation, and social interaction.
When studying which variables were associated with better quality of life, they observed that the time elapsed since implantation behaves as the main factor related to a greater perception of well-being, which points to a gradual adaptation process. On the contrary, no associations were detected either with age or with objective auditory performance.
Based on these results, the authors emphasize the existence of a progressive adaptation to the cochlear implant and recommend evaluating its long-term effects.
In the results of the quality of life questionnaire, the average overall score was 59.95 out of 100. The best scores were obtained in the area of speech and oral expression ability, with 64.88 points. Likewise, the sections related to daily activity and social interaction also exceeded 60 points.
In contrast, advanced sound perception, which captures the ability to navigate in more demanding auditory situations, such as following a group conversation or understanding speech in noisy environments, recorded an average score of 53.47.
BENEFITS AND CHALLENGES OF THE COCHLEAR IMPLANT
A second study, also presented at the SEORL-CCC Congress, supports the positive effect of the cochlear implant on oral communication, although it notes that speech comprehension in the presence of noise continues to be one of the main challenges for these patients.
This study was conducted at the Río Hortega University Hospital in Valladolid, with a sample of 25 adults with unilateral cochlear implants and, at minimum, one year of experience with the device.
According to the data obtained, in silence conditions the participants achieved an average recognition of 68.28 percent in bisyllabic words and 78 percent in sentences. However, their comprehension ability gradually decreased as the acoustic conditions worsened.
In word recognition, the percentage dropped from 68.28 percent in silence to 52.04 percent with a signal-to-noise ratio above 10 decibels and to 37.32 percent when it was reduced to more than five decibels.
In the most unfavorable situation analyzed, with voice and noise at the same intensity level, recognition fell to 12.68 percent. The decline was even more pronounced in the sentence recognition test, where it went from 78 percent in silence to 1.04 percent in the most adverse noise condition.
The authors insist on the need to continue advancing in auditory rehabilitation and improving the results of the implant in complex acoustic environments.