Kartläggning av barn och ungdomar med cochleaimplantat (CI) med avseende på kombinerad syn – hörselskada eller dövblindhet, diagnos rörande deras syn- hörselnedsättning samt frekvensen för uni- respektive bilateralt CI hos dessa barn och ungdomar

Abstract

Background The opportunity for cochlear implantation has now extended beyond children who are only deaf or hard of hearing. Children who are deaf blind from birth or early in life are receiving implants, but very limited research has been done for this population, and this raises important issues. Aim The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of hearing and vision impairment or deaf blindness in children with Cochlear Implants in Sweden and to investigate the diagnoses issues among these groups of subjects. Material and Method Subjects with an age between 1-18 years were ascertained through multiple sources and almost complete ascertainment was achieved. Results A total of 77 subjects with a referring diagnosis of combined hearing and vision disorder or deaf blindness were ascertained. Out of those, 30 subjects were excluded. Of the remaining 47 individuals, 47 % were found to have Usher, CHARGE and Down syndrome. The number of males and females with bilateral and unilateral CI was equal.

This study will provide critical information for health counselling and public health planning of children with cochlea implant in combination with vision loss.