Abstract
Typically, infants with hearing loss are first treated with hearing aids, and if these fail to help them develop early language and speech skills, children then become eligible for cochlear implants at 12 months or older. Some insurance companies have traditionally denied coverage of cochlear implants to deaf children with severe developmental delays (such as low cognitive skills and low adaptive, or learned, behavior), due to the belief that the implants will not help them learn to communicate. A recent study, however, has found that infants with hearing loss and severe developmental delays are better served with cochlear implants than hearing aids. Researchers assessed cognition, adaptive behavior, language, and auditory skills in children with hearing loss. All infants began the study wearing hearing aids. Researchers identified and compared the progress of children who continued to use hearing aids and those who received cochlear implants. By the time of the final assessment, children with cochlear implants—including children with learning delays—showed up to almost 25% more improvement in the tracked skills than those using hearing aids.