Auditory Development of Young Children with Profound Hearing Loss, Cochlear Implants, and Congenital CMV Infection

<b>Background/Objectives:</b> The aim of this study was to assess auditory development in young children with profound hearing loss, cochlear implants (CIs), and congenital cytomegalovirus (cCMV) infection and to determine the effect of comorbidities on their development. <b>Methods:</b> The study group (cCMV group) consisted of 47 CI children-18 girls and 29 boys-who had been diagnosed as having prelingual hearing loss due to cCMV infection (with or without comorbidities); the mean age at CI activation was 15.2 months (range: 9.7-23.8; SD = 3.5). The reference group (no cCMV) consisted of 117 similar children (57 girls and 60 boys) who had profound sensorineural hearing loss not caused by cCMV infection; they had no comorbidities. The mean age at CI activation in the second group was 14.3 months (range: 7.9-23.5; SD = 4.0). Auditory development in all children was assessed with the LittlEARS Auditory Questionnaire (LEAQ) at CI activation and at about 1, 5, 9, 14, and 24 months of CI use. <b>Results:</b> The mean LEAQ total score increased over a similar time frame from 9.8 pts to 28.9 pts in the cCMV group without comorbidities, from 4.5 pts to 18.5 pts in the cCMV group with comorbidities, and from 9.2 to 31.6 pts in the reference group with no cCMV infection. <b>Conclusions:</b> Early cochlear implantation in children with sensorineural hearing loss due to congenital CMV infection and no comorbidities promotes their early auditory development in a similar way to children without cCMV infection.