Cochlear implantation before age one or after: cognitive flexibility, planning, and problem-solving in pediatric recipients

This study investigated the association between age at cochlear implantation and executive function outcomes, including cognitive flexibility (CF) and planning and problem-solving (PPS), in school-age children with cochlear implants (CIs). Demographic, cognitive, and audiological factors associated with these outcomes were also examined.

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If the study finds significantly better executive function outcomes with implantation before age one, it would support counseling families toward earlier implantation; however, findings should be interpreted cautiously given likely small and heterogeneous pediatric samples typical in this literature.

Determining whether very early cochlear implantation (before age one) confers cognitive as well as auditory advantages could reshape implantation timing guidelines and parental counseling worldwide.

1. 01Study compares executive function outcomes in pediatric cochlear implant recipients implanted before vs. after age one.
2. 02Outcomes assessed include cognitive flexibility, planning, and problem-solving.
3. 03Published in European Archives of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology, a peer-reviewed surgical ENT journal.
4. 04Findings are relevant to ongoing debates about optimal timing of pediatric cochlear implantation.
5. 05Executive function differences may have long-term educational and developmental implications for implanted children.

PMID

42760367

DOI

10.1007/s00405-026-10618-w.

Journal

European Archives of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology

Publication type

research_article

Evidence level

3

Population

Pediatric cochlear implant recipients, stratified by age at implantation (before vs. after age one)

Intervention

Cochlear implantation before age one

Comparator

Cochlear implantation after age one