The majority of cochlear implant (CIs) recipients have been postlingually deaf adults, so it is not surprising that most research has focused them. The number of pediatric CI recipients is close to exceeding the number of implanted adults, however, and it is increasingly important for audi-ologists, speech therapists, and scientists to better understand performance outcomes in children. What are some of the differences between prelingually and posdingually deaf CI users? Previous research has shown that the auditory nerve degenerates slowly following deafness. The degree of degeneration is proportional to the duration of deafness: the longer the deafness period, the greater the auditory nerve loss. The Food and Drug Administration in 2000 approved CI implantation in children 12 months and older with severe to profound hearing loss, meaning that a 12-month-old infants who receive CIs have been without sound since birth.
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