Initial experience with children using the Nucleus 22 Channel cochlear implant.

The Nucleus 22 Channel cochlear prosthesis developed by the University of Melbourne and Cochlear Pty Ltd is now being used in over 90 clinics worldwide, in fourteen countries and fifteen languages. A total of thirty adolescents and thirty-nine children have now been implanted in Australia, America and more recently Germany. There have been no significant postoperative complications, and the device has been successfully programmed in children as young as two years nine months. Comprehensive evaluation and training programs are being undertaken with each implanted child to assess long term development of speech perception and communication skills. The average postoperative stimulation time for most of the children implanted is around 3 months, so as yet, little data has been recorded on these patients. However, the two original children implanted in Melbourne have now been using their speech processors in excess of 18 months. The focus of this paper will be on the performance of these two children.