Journal of Speech Pathology & Therapy
Open Access

Research Article

Using the International Classification of Functioning Model to Gain New Insight into the Impact of Cochlear Implants on Prelingually Deafened Recipients

¹Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Alberta - Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine, Edmonton, AB T6G2G4, Canada

²Department of Audiology, Alberta Health Services - Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital, Edmonton, AB T5G 0B7, Canada

³Department of Surgery – Otolaryngology, University of Alberta - Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Edmonton, AB T6G 2B7, Canada

^*Corresponding Author:

Ming Zhang
University of Alberta
Departments of Communication Sciences & Disorders
Surgery-Otolaryngology, University of Alberta, 114th Street
Edmonton, AB T6G 2G4, Canada
Tel: +1 780-492-3111
E-mail: ming.zhang@ualberta.ca

Received date: November 23, 2015; Accepted date: July 22, 2016; Published date: August 01, 2016

Citation: Zhang M, Malysa C, Huettmeyer F, Piplica D, Schmidt B (2016) Using the International Classification of Functioning Model to Gain New Insight into the Impact of Cochlear Implants on Prelingually Deafened Recipients. J Speech Pathol Ther 1:117. doi: 10.4172/2472-5005.1000117

Copyright: © 2016 Zhang M, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Objective: Speech perceptions are a traditional measure typically used to diagnose and evaluate outcomes of cochlear implants (CI) in prelingually deafened recipients, but this limits the ability to evaluate all potential outcomes. This study used a new approach which may cover all potential outcomes.

Methods: A new measure based on the World Health Organization-International Classification of Functioning (WHO-ICF) model was used to diagnose and evaluate outcomes of a series of eight patients attended to our tertiary referral center. The patients were prelingual cochlear implant users. The outcomes were evaluated based on the scores in three WHO-ICF model based categories: 1) Quality of Participation Activities, 2) Quantity of Hearing Activities, and 3) Environmental Factors.

Results: Scores were inter-related among the categories. Environmental Factors increased the frequency of participation in hearing activities, but may not necessarily result in better quality or performance for those activities. The quality of life improved with CI for factors including one-on-one conversations, family relationships, enjoyment in music, safety, self-esteem, overall happiness, and level of independence.

Conclusions: Preliminary findings support the use of a WHO-ICF model in evaluating outcomes for the prelingually deafened adult CI users. Quality and frequency of hearing activities were improved in many aspects of the lives of prelingually deafened adults post-CI. This study also highlights the impact of support from family, health professionals and friends on the overall benefits received from the CI.

Keywords