title: Global developmental abilities of cochlear implanted children with spastic cerebral palsy: two experimental groups.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To analyze gross motor, fine motor-adaptive, language, social function performance, and communicative behaviors among cochlear-implanted children with spastic cerebral palsy (CP) and children with CP without hearing loss (HL) and to compare them with children with normal development.
  
  
  METHODS
  Prospective cross-sectional study involving 12 children with mean age of 63 months, distributed into two experimental groups: G1-4 children with CP and cochlear implant (CI) users and G2-4 children with CP without HL. A third group (G3) was the control group with four typically developing children. In the experimental groups, six children were classified in level II and two in level IV, using the Gross Motor Function Classification System. We used the Denver Developmental Screening Test II and the Communicative Behavior Observation (CBO).
  
  
  RESULTS
  G3 showed better performance than G1 and G2 in all evaluations. G2 showed better results than G1 in language, communication, personal-social, and fine motor-adaptive areas, except in the gross motor area. Aspects of language and communicative behaviors were lower in both experimental groups, especially in G1. Skills related to personal-social area showed no differences among the groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Motor impairment of G1 and G2 and HL in G1 affected the development in the assessed areas, but these factors did not restrict personal-social development. Children with CP did not achieve high development in social function; however, the difference with relation to G3 was not statically significant. The CI provided a channel for oral language reception and social interaction, which has a key role in determining the quality of life.
authors.affiliation: Dental School of Bauru, Universidade de São Paulo, Bauru, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Dionísia Aparecida Cusin
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Lamônica
authors.affiliation: Dental School of Bauru, Universidade de São Paulo, Bauru, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Maria Jaquelini Dias dos
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Santos
authors.affiliation: Dental School of Bauru, Universidade de São Paulo, Bauru, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Cora Sofia Takaya
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Paiva
authors.affiliation: Universidade de São Paulo, Bauru, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Leandra Tabanez do Nascimento
authors.initials: LT
authors.lastname: Silva
mesh_terms: D002547:Cerebral Palsy / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D002648:Child; D002657:Child Development; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003054:Cochlear Implants; D003142:Communication; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009048:Motor Skills; D011446:Prospective Studies