Illness perceptions in cochlear implant users - a longitudinal study.

Area of Science:

• Audiology
• Psychology
• Rehabilitation Science

Background:

• Illness perceptions influence health outcomes.
• Leventhal's Self-Regulatory Model (SRM) suggests modifying illness perceptions can optimize cochlear implant (CI) outcomes.
• Understanding CI users' perceptions is crucial for effective rehabilitation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess illness perceptions in CI users.
• To determine changes in illness perceptions during six months of CI rehabilitation.

Main Methods:

• 138 participants completed the Brief Illness Perception Questionnaire (Brief IPQ).
• Data collected at CI fitting and six-month follow-up.
• Rehabilitation included auditory training, medical, audiological, and psychological treatments.

Main Results:

• Participants consistently perceived hearing impairment as a severe threat.
• Perceived consequences improved due to CI hearing gains.
• Perceptions of understanding and identity worsened during rehabilitation.
• Other scales and total scores remained unchanged.

Conclusions:

• Current CI rehabilitation is insufficient to improve threatening illness perceptions, except for consequences.
• Standard information may not adequately address patient understanding and identity.
• Developing targeted interventions for individual illness perceptions in CI recipients is recommended.
• Further research is needed to validate these findings.