University of Florida professor will study cognitive and developmental effects of cochlear implants in children

Alexandra Quittner, Ph.D., a professor of clinical and health psychology at the University of Florida College of Health Professions, has received a $1 million subcontract from a National Institutes of Health grant to examine childhood development after implantation of devices that aid hearing-impaired individuals.

The $10 million grant from the National Institute of Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) will enable researchers to evaluate language acquisition, speech recognition skills, selective attention and problem-solving skills, behavioral and social development, parent-child interactions and quality of life measures in 250 deaf children under the age of 3. The study will involve youngsters who receive cochlear implants at six participating centers across the United States.

Cochlear implants electrically stimulate the inner ear and enable individuals with severe hearing loss to perceive sound. The implant is surgically placed under the skin behind the ear. About 10,000 children have received cochlear implants in the United States, according to the NIDCD.

Quittner will oversee the design of methods for measuring the cognitive and behavioral development of children before and after implantation. She will code and analyze the data gathered through videotapes of the children performing tasks at implant centers, as well as reports from parents and teachers.

“This study is exciting because while there is good evidence that cochlear implants facilitate communication, speech recognition and language, very little is known about how implants affect the cognitive and psychological development of the hearing impaired children who receive them,” Quittner said.

The five-year study is led by John Niparko, M.D., director of otology, audiology, neurotology and skull base surgery at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, Md.