Bilateral and unilateral cochlear implant users compared on speech perception in noise.

OBJECTIVE Compare speech performance in noise with matched bilateral cochlear implant (CICI) and unilateral cochlear implant (CI only) users. DESIGN Thirty CICI and 30 CI-only subjects were tested on a battery of speech perception tests in noise that use an eight-loudspeaker array. RESULTS On average, CICI subject's performance with speech in noise was significantly better than the CI-only subjects. CONCLUSION The CICI group showed significantly better performance on speech perception in noise compared with the CI-only subjects, supporting the hypothesis that CICI is more beneficial than CI only.