O uso de um software na (re)habilitação de crianças com deficiência auditiva / Software use in the (re)habilitation of hearing impaired children

OBJETIVO: Verificar a aplicabilidade de um software na (re)habilitação de crianças com deficiência auditiva. MÉTODOS: A amostra foi composta por 17 crianças com deficiência auditiva, sendo dez usuárias de Implante Coclear (IC) e sete usuárias de Aparelho de Amplificação Sonora Individual (AASI). Foi utilizado o "Software Auxiliar na Reabilitação de Distúrbios Auditivos (SARDA)". Aplicou-se o protocolo de treinamento durante 30 minutos, duas vezes por semana, pelo tempo necessário para a finalização das estratégias que compõe software. Para mensurar a aplicabilidade do software no treinamento da habilidade de percepção da fala no silêncio e no ruído, foram realizadas avaliações com o Hearing in Noise Test (HINT) pré e pós o treinamento auditivo. Os dados foram analisados estatisticamente. RESULTADOS: O grupo de usuários de IC necessitou em média 12,2 dias para finalizar as estratégias e o grupo de usuários de AASI em média 10,14 dias. Os dois grupos apresentaram diferença entre as avaliações pré e pós no silêncio e no ruído. As crianças mais novas apresentaram maior dificuldade durante a execução das estratégias, porém não houve correlação entre a idade e o desempenho. Não houve influência do tipo do dispositivo eletrônico durante o treinamento. As crianças apresentaram maior dificuldade na estratégia que envolvia estímulos não verbais e na estratégia com estímulos verbais que treina a habilidade de atenção sustentada. A atenção e a motivação da criança durante a estimulação foram fundamentais para o bom rendimento do treinamento auditivo. CONCLUSÃO: O treinamento auditivo com o SARDA foi eficaz, pois propiciou melhora na habilidade de percepção da fala, no silêncio e no ruído, das crianças com deficiência auditiva.

PURPOSE: To verify the applicability of a software in the (re)habilitation of hearing impaired children. METHODS: The sample comprised 17 children with hearing impairment, ten with cochlear implants (CI) and seven with hearing aids (HA). The Software Auxiliar na Reabilitação de Distúrbios Auditivos - SARDA (Auxiliary Software for the Rehabilitation of Hearing Disorders) was used. The training protocol was applied for 30 minutes, twice a week, for the necessary time to complete the strategies proposed in the software. To measure the software's applicability for training the speech perception ability in quiet and in noise, subjects were assessed through the Hearing in Noise Test (HINT), before and after the auditory training. Data were statistically analyzed. RESULTS: The group of CI users needed, in average, 12.2 days to finish the strategies, and the group of HA users, in average 10.14 days. Both groups presented differences between pre and post assessments, both in quiet and in noise. Younger children showed more difficulty executing the strategies, however, there was no correlation between age and performance. The type of electronic device did not influence the training. Children presented greater difficulty in the strategy involving non-verbal stimuli and in the strategy with verbal stimuli that trains the sustained attention ability. Children's attention and motivation during stimulation were fundamental for a successful auditory training. CONCLUSION: The auditory training using the SARDA was effective, providing improvement of the speech perception ability, both in quiet and in noise, for the hearing impaired children.

Instruments to assess the oral language of children fitted with a cochlear implant: a systematic review

The oral language development depends on the effective development of the hearing system. In cases of children presenting with hearing loss, a cochlear implant is an electronic device indicated to (re)habilitate the hearing function. Thus, it is of paramount importance to assess and follow the oral language development of children fitted with a cochlear implant (CI) to measure the effectiveness of the electronic device and support the therapeutic planning of these children. Questions are currently being raised about the instruments to assess the oral language of children using a CI, and, seeking the answers, this systematic review aimed at surveying these instruments. Searches were performed in three different databases utilizing six different descriptors to select articles published from 2004 to 2009 that performed an oral language assessment of children with a CI. Initially, 373 articles were found, and, after the application of inclusion criteria, 47 articles were analyzed, resulting in a survey of 74 instruments for oral language assessment, including tests, questionnaires and inventories. In analyzing the articles, it was realized that the studies included in this systematic review presented varied methodologies and low levels of evidence, with a greater concentration of instruments assessing receptive and expressive language, emphasizing the survey of the child's vocabulary and questionnaires. Thus, it can be verified that other linguistic skills, such as morphosyntactic, semantic, and narrative-pragmatic ones that are important in structuring speech and language for the effectiveness of the child's speech, are not being focused on. Just one of the instruments cited, a questionnaire, was specific for the oral language assessment of children with cochlear implants.