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Exposure to Spoken Communication in Children With Cochlear Implants During the COVID-19 Lockdown
Karen A Gordon1,2,3, Maya F Daien1, Jaina Negandhi1
1Archie's Cochlear Implant Laboratory, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
JAMA Otolaryngology-- Head & Neck Surgery
|February 18, 2021
Summary
COVID-19 lockdowns significantly reduced spoken communication for children with cochlear implants in Ontario. These children experienced less speech exposure and more quiet environments during the pandemic restrictions.
Area of Science:
- Audiology
- Pediatric Health
- Public Health
Background:
- The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns in Ontario, Canada, drastically altered the daily lives of children.
- Children with hearing loss, particularly those using cochlear implants, are a vulnerable population susceptible to changes in auditory environments.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantify the impact of COVID-19 lockdowns on the spoken communication environments of children with cochlear implants.
- To compare sound exposure levels and types for children before and during the provincial state of emergency and subsequent business closures.
Main Methods:
- A cohort study involving 45 children with hearing implants in Ontario, Canada.
- Utilized cochlear implant datalogs to monitor sound input levels (dBA) and auditory scenes (quiet, speech, noise, etc.) before (pre-COVID-19) and during (peri-COVID-19) lockdowns.
- Employed mixed-model regression analyses to assess changes in sound exposure.
Main Results:
- Despite consistent cochlear implant use, children experienced significant reductions in sound levels, particularly in the 60-69 dBA and 70-79 dBA ranges.
- Speech exposure decreased by 0.98 hours, altering the speech-to-quiet ratio from 1.6:1.0 to 0.9:1.0.
- School-aged children showed the greatest reduction in daily speech percentage, and increased quiet time was linked to smaller household sizes.
Conclusions:
- COVID-19 lockdowns were clearly associated with reduced access to spoken communication for children with cochlear implants.
- These findings highlight the critical impact of environmental sound changes on auditory development and communication access in pediatric hearing loss populations.
