title: Quality of life and hearing after cochlear implant placement in patients over 60 years of age.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Multicenter evaluation of the quality of life and quality of hearing after Nucleus® cochlear implant placement in patients over 60 years of age.
  Evaluation was performed in patients receiving cochlear implants after the age of 60 years as a part of the Cochlear-Implanted Recipient Observational Study (Cochlear-IROS). This study is a prospective, international and long-term assessment which enables observation of recipients for up to three years after implantation. Data regarding subjective evaluation of the quality of life and quality of hearing were gathered before the first switch-on of the sound processor and one year afterwards. Standardized questionnaires were used in this evaluation, including Health Utility Index (HUI mk. III) and Speech, Spatial and Qualities of Hearing (SSQ) Scale. Data were also gathered regarding the aetiology of hearing loss, hearing aid usage, tinnitus and vertigo, as well as on the telephone usage and the professional status of recipients.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Included in the evaluation, were 20 subjects who were over 60 years old at the moment of the cochlear implant surgery. The study group consisted of 12 men and 8 female patients. The average age of CI recipients at the moment of implantation was 67.8 years (min. 60, max. 80 years). The SSQ questionnaire outcomes regarding self-assessment in the field of ability to hear in everyday situations one year after the surgery indicate that speech understanding increased by 180%, spatial hearing increased by 135 % and quality of hearing increased by 98%. Overall quality of life before the first sound processor switch-on as assessed using the HUI questionnaire was at the level of 0.38 (on 0-1 scale, where 0 equals death, and 1 equals full health). One year after the implantation, this assessment increased by 33% (up to 0.5 on the scale).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The effectiveness of the cochlear implantation in patients with severe hearing loss after 60 years of age with respect to the quality of life and hearing was confirmed. Statistically significant improvement was demonstrated in the self-assessment of patients in relation to the speech understanding, spatial hearing and quality of hearing, as well as quality of life.
authors.affiliation: Katedra i Klinika Foniatrii i Audiologii Uniwersytetu Medycznego w Poznaniu.
authors.forename: Hanna
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Czerniejewska-Wolska
authors.affiliation: Katedra i Klinika Foniatrii i Audiologii Uniwersytetu Medycznego w Poznaniu.
authors.forename: Magdalena
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kałos
authors.affiliation: Katedra i Klinika Foniatrii i Audiologii Uniwersytetu Medycznego w Poznaniu.
authors.forename: Alicja
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sekula
authors.affiliation: Klinika Otolaryngologii Uniwersytetu Medycznego w Białymstoku.
authors.forename: Bartosz
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Piszczatowski
authors.affiliation: Klinika Otolaryngologii Uniwersytetu Medycznego w Białymstoku.
authors.forename: Justyna
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rutkowska
authors.affiliation: Klinika Otolaryngologii Uniwersytetu Medycznego w Białymstoku.
authors.forename: Marek
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rogowski
authors.affiliation: Klinika Otolaryngologii i Onkologii Laryngologicznej Uniwersytetu Medycznego w Lublinie.
authors.forename: Marek
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zadrożniak
authors.affiliation: Klinika Otolaryngologii i Onkologii Laryngologicznej Uniwersytetu Medycznego w Lublinie.
authors.forename: Marcin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Szymański
authors.affiliation: Klinika Otolaryngologii i Onkologii Laryngologicznej Uniwersytetu Medycznego w Lublinie.
authors.forename: Janusz
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Klatka
authors.affiliation: Katedra Otolaryngologii, Klinika Otolaryngologii i Laryngologii Onkologicznej Uniwersytetu Medycznego w Łodzi.
authors.forename: Marcin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Durko
authors.affiliation: Katedra Otolaryngologii, Klinika Otolaryngologii i Laryngologii Onkologicznej Uniwersytetu Medycznego w Łodzi.
authors.forename: Wioletta
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Pietruszewska
authors.affiliation: Medicus Aparatura i Instrumenty Medyczne Sp. z o.o. Sp. k., Wrocław.
authors.forename: Maria Bratumiła
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Gawłowska
authors.affiliation: Medicus Aparatura i Instrumenty Medyczne Sp. z o.o. Sp. k., Wrocław.
authors.forename: Joanna
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kuśmierczyk
authors.affiliation: Medicus Aparatura i Instrumenty Medyczne Sp. z o.o. Sp. k., Wrocław.
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kruk-Krzemień
authors.affiliation: Medicus Dolnośląskie Centrum Laryngologii Sp. z o.o. Sp. k., Wrocław.
authors.forename: Bożena
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Wiskirska-Woźnica
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D019929:Cochlear Implantation / Q000523:psychology*; D003054:Cochlear Implants; D012048:Correction of Hearing Impairment / Q000523:psychology*; D003638:Deafness / Q000523:psychology* / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D057566:Self Report; D013067:Speech Perception