The relationship between the intraoperative ECAP threshold and postoperative behavioral levels: the difference between postlingually deafened adults and prelingually deafened pediatric cochlear implant users.
The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between electrically evoked compound-action potential (ECAP) thresholds, electrically evoked auditory brain-stem response (EABR) thresholds, behavioral thresholds (T levels) and maximum comfort levels (C levels) in profoundly deaf cochlear-implant users. The ECAP thresholds were measured intraoperatively in eight postlingually deafened adults and nine (eight prelingually and one postlingually deafened) children implanted with the Nucleus CI24 M cochlear implant. The mean ECAP thresholds did not differ between children and adults. The average behavioral T and C levels after at least 6 months of experience with a cochlear implant were significantly higher in children than those in adults. The ECAP thresholds were more strongly correlated with T and C levels in children than in adults. The stronger correlation between ECAP thresholds and behavioral T and C levels in children than in adults might result from differences in loudness sensation, which should in turn depend on auditory experience.
Morita
Takeshi
T
Department of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, 54 Shogoin Kawahara-cho Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan. morita@hs.m.kyoto-u.ac.jp
Naito
Yasushi
Y
Hirai
Tomoko
T
Yamaguchi
Shinobu
S
Ito
Juichi
J
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D001309:Auditory Threshold / Q000502:physiology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D019929:Cochlear Implantation / Q000379:methods*; D003638:Deafness / Q000151:congenital* / Q000601:surgery*; D005072:Evoked Potentials, Auditory / Q000502:physiology*; D016057:Evoked Potentials, Auditory, Brain Stem / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006312:Hearing Loss, Bilateral / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D007804:Language Development; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016343:Monitoring, Intraoperative / Q000379:methods; D011184:Postoperative Period; D011446:Prospective Studies; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012494:Sampling Studies; D013067:Speech Perception; D016896:Treatment Outcome