The use of cochlear implantation in the elderly

Abstract

Purpose of review: To evaluate the impact of cochlear implantation on hearing outcomes, quality of life, complications, and cognitive function in elderly patients.

Recent findings: Nine articles published between 2014 and 2019 pertain to cochlear implantation in the elderly population. The findings conclude that cochlear implantation improves autonomy and overall quality of life in the elderly.

Summary: Design: a pubmed search was employed with title search terms 'cochlear implant,' AND 'elderly' or 'aged.' Twenty-one articles were generated. Of the 21, articles without evidence-based findings were excluded and those published more than 5 years ago were excluded, yielding a final number of nine articles for review.

Results: nine articles published on the use of cochlear implantation in the elderly were identified through the literature search between the years 2014-2019. Outcomes included quality of life, speech recognition improvement, improvement in cognitive function as defined by geriatric validated scales, outcomes of hearing rehabilitation, improvement in verbal comprehension, surgical complications, and the ability to manage the external components of the device.

Conclusion: cochlear implantation improves autonomy and the quality of life in the elderly. Age should not be a factor limiting surgical decision-making, and cochlear implantation can be utilized as a well tolerated, efficient treatment option for severe-to-profound hearing loss in the elderly population.