Cochlear Implants in Children

Cochlear implants are used to help children who have sensorineural hearing loss who get little or no benefit from hearing aids.

Your UChicago provider will work with you to determine whether a hearing aid or cochlear implant is right for your child.

Cochlear implantation can be performed on children as young as 9 months old.

The earlier your child receives an implant, the greater the potential is that he/she will develop listening/speaking skills at the same level as their peers who have no hearing loss. Our multidisciplinary cochlear implant team has the ability and resources to help your child make as much progress as possible with listening/speaking skills.

For your child to be successful with their cochlear implant, your family must make this strong commitment together. We know that you are the most important part of the process for any child.

If you are considering this treatment for your child, there are many families with children have had cochlear implants at Comer Children’s that would be happy to share their experiences with you during your decision-making process.

Initial evaluation is done on an outpatient basis. It is noninvasive and usually takes several hours.

Our audiologists will administer a series of tests individually tailored to your child's condition. Common assessments include:

• Behavioral audiometric evaluation, with and without hearing aids
• Speech perception testing to determine the functional benefit of hearing aids
• Immittance measurements to determine if the child has or may have a tendency toward middle ear fluid
• Electrophysiologic testing to gather information about inner ear and auditory nerve function

Parents are asked to complete questionnaires to help determine functional hearing and hearing aid benefit.

Speech and language evaluation and educational plan assessments are ongoing components of the process involved in helping your child attain appropriate developmental levels.

Cochlear implant surgery is a routine outpatient procedure that typically lasts two to three hours, but we like for your child to stay overnight so we can monitor their progress. During surgery, a small incision is made behind the ear to access the mastoid bone, which is partially drilled away to give access to the inner ear structures and allow the internal device to be seated. Your child will wake up with a gauze dressing over the ear that should remain in place for 24 to 48 hours after surgery to help reduce swelling. Once removed, please keep the incision dry until your child's surgeon tells you that it can get wet. Pain after surgery is usually minimal, typically acetaminaphen or ibuprofen is enough to relieve your child's pain. Additionally, the surgeon may prescribe a course of antibiotics to take after surgery to help your child prevent infection. 

At Comer Children’s, you may wait in the operating room until the anesthesia takes effect and your child is asleep — one of many extra steps our cochlear implant team takes to assure the best experience for your child and for you. For your comfort, we can also arrange an overnight stay for your child and family.

Three to four weeks after surgery, your child returns to have the implanted device activated. This involves linking the implanted internal receiver to the external speech processor. The audiologist creates the initial MAP or program, which allows your child to hear sound for the first time with the cochlear implant.

This is a truly momentous occasion — the moment at which your child moves from a world of silence into a world of sound. Our surgeon and staff celebrate this major turning point in your child’s life with you at a "Hearing Birthday" party, which marks a totally new beginning for your child and family.

Once the cochlear implant is activated, your child returns for check-ups and therapy on a regular basis. Typically, there are evaluations at the two-week, one-month, three-month, six-month and nine-month marks. At each evaluation, your child’s speech processor is remapped and additional testing is provided as needed. Each child hears differently, and our audiologists excel at matching programs to each child’s unique style of hearing. Quarterly speech therapy appointments with our speech-language pathologist/auditory-verbal therapist document the progress your child is making in listening and spoken language.

After the first year, audiograms and speech perception tests are given every six months for two to three years, and then switch to annually. Programming is done at the same intervals, and speech and language evaluation is done once every six months or on an annual basis. If necessary, your child may require more frequent follow-up visits.

If you live far away and/or it is not convenient for you to come here on a regular basis, we work with you to find health care professionals in your area who can provide care that is both appropriate and convenient.

There are a variety of resources available for parents of children with cochlear implants.

• Child's Voice
• CHOICES for Parents
• Guide by your Side (GBYS)
• Hearing First