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Updated: May 3, 2026

Assessment of Cerebral Lateralization in Children using Functional Transcranial Doppler Ultrasound fTCD
Published on: September 27, 2010
Cerebral lateralization for language in deaf children with cochlear implantation
Anna Maria Chilosi1, Alessandro Comparini1, Paola Cristofani1
1Dipartimento di Neuroscienze dell'Età Evolutiva, IRCCS Fondazione Stella Maris, Pisa, Italy.
Abstract:
Functional Transcranial Doppler ultrasonography (fTCD) was used to investigate the effects of early acoustic deprivation and subsequent reafferentation on cerebral dominance for language in deaf children provided with Cochlear Implantation (CI). Twenty children with CI (13 in right ear and 7 in left ear) and 20 controls matched for age, sex and handedness were administered a fTCD animation description task. Left hemisphere dominance for language with comparable mean Laterality Indexes (LIs) was found in children with CI and controls; right-ear implanted subjects showed cerebral activation controlateral to implanted ear more frequently than left-ear implanted ones. Linguistic proficiency of CI recipients was below age expectation in comparison to controls; language scores did not significantly differ between children with left and right LI, whereas both age and side of implantation were significantly related to language outcome. Theoretical implication and potential clinical application of fTCD in CI management are discussed.
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