Performance after cochlear implantation in DFNB1 patients

To evaluate the speech perception and language development with cochlear implants (CI) of DFNB1 children in comparison with non-DFNB1 deaf children. Retrospective case series. Academic tertiary center. Thirty-one congenitally deafened children, screened for GJB2 allele variants, were followed for an average 32 months after CI. With the use of age-appropriate testing, 75% of DFNB1 and 53% of non-DFNB1 children achieved open set word recognition (speech perception category [SPC] level 6). Multivariate analysis showed that SPC was primarily dependent on duration of CI use, but not on the cause of hearing loss. In Reynell language tests, DFNB1 children showed more consistent and quicker gains than non-DFNB1 children. Although children with CI with DFNB1 show faster gains in Reynell scores, duration of CI use appears to have a greater effect on speech perception than DFNB1 status. Identification of DFNB1 children is useful in counseling of CI outcomes.