Auditory Perception and Verbal Intelligibility in Children with Cochlear Implant, Hearing Aids and Normal Hearing

Objective: The aim of the present research was to compare the auditory perception and verbal intelligibility in children with cochlear implant, hearing aids and normal hearing. Methods: 60 children aged 5-7 years were divided to three groups and each group contained 20 children. The first and second groups were selected ordinarily from children with cochlear implant and hearing aids by convenient sampling method, while that third group was selected randomly from children with normal hearing. All participants answered to Categories of Auditory Performance (CAP) and Speech Intelligibility Rating (SIR). Results: The results revealed that mean scores of CAP and SIR in normal hearing children were significantly higher than the mean scores of children in other groups (P<0.0005). Also, the mean scores of CAP in children with cochlear implant were significantly more than the mean scores of children with hearing aids (P<0.002) Additionally, the mean scores of SIR in children with cochlear implant had not a significant difference in children with hearing aids (P<0.65). Conclusion: This study confirms that auditory perception and verbal intelligibility are multidimensional and complex phenomenon. They require unique rehabilitation program in order to achieve more development in speech skills.