The development of quality of life and hearing ability of adult cochlear implant users in the course of outpatient cochlear implant follow-up therapy

Research question: The increase in hearing ability of postlingually deafened patients with cochlear implants (CI) is usually measured using various audiometric tests. In addition, a variety of different subjective measures of patients’ hearing-related and general quality of life (QoL) are also used. Only a few studies deal with the development in the course of the frequently required inpatient or outpatient hearing rehabilitation. The aim of the present study was to measure the development of adult CI patients in the course of outpatient follow-up therapy. Methods: 58 patients between the ages of 14 and 84 were tested. The measurements using the Freiburg and Oldenburg Sentence (OLSA) Tests and the Nijmegen Cochlear Implant Questionnaire (NCIQ) were taken at the beginning and end of each rehabilitation phase of follow-up therapy. Results: In all subcategories of the NCIQ and in the overall score, as well as in most audiological measurements, there are significant improvements with small to medium effect sizes over the course of a rehabilitation phase. Patients who had lower scores at the beginning of the rehabilitation phase improved in particular. The improvements are independent of the duration of the rehabilitation phase. At the beginning of the rehabilitation phase, there are significant correlations in the OLSA with the subscales of the NCIQ that are closer to hearing, but only at the end of the rehabilitation phase with the scales that characterize the psychosocial satisfaction of the patients. Conclusions: In particular, patients with a poorer starting position at the beginning of the rehabilitation phase appear to benefit from outpatient follow-up therapy both in terms of objective measurements and in terms of their subjectively perceived quality of life. The gains in both areas do not seem to develop at the same speed: it is possible that the improved hearing ability must first prove itself in everyday life in order to lead to a higher subjectively perceived quality of life in the long term.