ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES EXPECTED AND REPORTED BY COCHLEAR IMPLANT PATIENTS

An open-ended questionnaire was administered to 20 patients using the Nucleus multichannel cochlear implant and 21 patients using the Inerai d multichannel cochlear implant. Before surgery, they were asked to li st the advantages and disadvantages that they expected from their coch lear implant. Advantages were expected in the categories of: (1) speec h perception when speechreading can be used (65%); (2) environmental s ound perception (58%); (3) psychological effects (14%); (4) speech per ception when speechreading cannot be used (49%); (5) lifestyle and soc ial effects (42%); and (6) speech production (5%). Disadvantages were expected in: (1) equipment malfunction (42%); (2) environmental sound perception (28%); (3) speech perception when speechreading can be used (7%); (4) psychological effects (24%); (5) speech perception when spe echreading is not used (7%); and (6) lifestyle and social effects (7%) . Concerns were also raised about the risk of surgery (9%). After seve ral months (4-60 mo) of using their implant, patients were asked to li st the advantages and disadvantages that they actually experienced. Ad vantages were reported in the categories of: (1) speech perception whe n speechreading can be used (86%); (2) environmental sound perception (79%); (3) psychological effects (49%); (4) speech perception when spe echreading cannot be used (56%); (5) lifestyle and social effects (40% ); (6) speech production (14%); and (7) the reduction of tinnitus (7%) . Disadvantages were reported in: (1) equipment malfunction (54%); (2) environmental sound perception (53%); (3) speech perception when spee chreading can be used (26%); (4) psychological effects (12%); (5) spee ch perception when speechreading is not used (21%); and (6) lifestyle and social effects (9%). Concerns were also noted about the cost of su rgery (14%). Thirty patients had tinnitus preoperatively. Without hear ing sound through the implant, 70 percent of these indicated that the cochlear implant had a positive effect on their tinnitus. When listeni ng to speech through the implant, 83 percent reported that their tinni tus was reduced.