Cerebral lateralization for language in deaf children with cochlear implantation.
Functional Transcranial Doppler ultrasonography (fTCD) was used to investigate the effects of early acoustic deprivation and subsequent reafferentation on cerebral dominance for language in deaf children provided with Cochlear Implantation (CI). Twenty children with CI (13 in right ear and 7 in left ear) and 20 controls matched for age, sex and handedness were administered a fTCD animation description task. Left hemisphere dominance for language with comparable mean Laterality Indexes (LIs) was found in children with CI and controls; right-ear implanted subjects showed cerebral activation controlateral to implanted ear more frequently than left-ear implanted ones. Linguistic proficiency of CI recipients was below age expectation in comparison to controls; language scores did not significantly differ between children with left and right LI, whereas both age and side of implantation were significantly related to language outcome. Theoretical implication and potential clinical application of fTCD in CI management are discussed.
Dipartimento di Neuroscienze dell'Età Evolutiva, IRCCS Fondazione Stella Maris, Pisa, Italy. Electronic address: achilosi@inpe.unipi.it.
Anna Maria
AM
Chilosi
Dipartimento di Neuroscienze dell'Età Evolutiva, IRCCS Fondazione Stella Maris, Pisa, Italy.
Alessandro
A
Comparini
Dipartimento di Neuroscienze dell'Età Evolutiva, IRCCS Fondazione Stella Maris, Pisa, Italy.
Paola
P
Cristofani
Dipartimento di Neuroscienze, Psicologia, Area del Farmaco e Salute del Bambino (NEUROFARBA), Università di Firenze, Piazza San Marco 4, 50100 Firenze, Italy.
Marco
M
Turi
Dipartimento di Ricerca Traslazionale e delle Nuove Tecnologie in Medicina e Chirurgia, Università di Pisa, Via Paradisa 2, 56100 Pisa, Italy.
Stefano
S
Berrettini
Dipartimento di Ricerca Traslazionale e delle Nuove Tecnologie in Medicina e Chirurgia, Università di Pisa, Via Paradisa 2, 56100 Pisa, Italy.
Francesca
F
Forli
Dipartimento di Medicina Clinica e Sperimentale, Università di Pisa, Via Roma 67, 56100 Pisa, Italy.
Giovanni
G
Orlandi
Dipartimento di Medicina Clinica e Sperimentale, Università di Pisa, Via Roma 67, 56100 Pisa, Italy.
Alberto
A
Chiti
Dipartimento di Medicina Clinica e Sperimentale, Università di Pisa, Via Roma 67, 56100 Pisa, Italy.
Nicola
N
Giannini
Dipartimento di Neuroscienze dell'Età Evolutiva, IRCCS Fondazione Stella Maris, Pisa, Italy.
Paola
P
Cipriani
Dipartimento di Neuroscienze dell'Età Evolutiva, IRCCS Fondazione Stella Maris, Pisa, Italy; Dipartimento di Medicina Clinica e Sperimentale, Università di Pisa, Via Roma 67, 56100 Pisa, Italy.
Giovanni
G
Cioni
D000293:Adolescent; D002560:Cerebrovascular Circulation; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D019929:Cochlear Implantation; D003054:Cochlear Implants; D003638:Deafness / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000628:therapy*; D004292:Dominance, Cerebral; D005260:Female; D007839:Functional Laterality; D006801:Humans; D007802:Language; D008297:Male; D017585:Ultrasonography, Doppler, Transcranial
Cerebral language lateralization; Cochlear implantation; Deaf children; Functional transcranial Doppler ultrasonography; Language outcome