Table 16:
Quality of Life—Children
| Author, Year | Test Measures | UCI | BCI | P Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sparreboom, et al, 201293 | VAS-healtha | Own control (pre-BCI) | Own control (pre-BCI) | |
| 0.90 (0.80–0.95) | 12 months: 0.90 (0.80–0.97) | NS | ||
| 24 months: 0.90 (0.80–0.96) | NS | |||
| Separate UCI control | Separate UCI control | |||
| 12 months: 0.90 (0.80–0.97) | 12 months: 0.90 (0.80–0.97) | NS | ||
| 24 months: 0.90 (0.80–0.96) | 24 months: 0.90 (0.80–0.96) | NS | ||
| HUI-3b | Own control (pre-BCI) | Own control (pre-BCI) | ||
| 0.58 (0.53–0.78) | 12 months: 0.66 (0.53–0.79) | NS | ||
| 24 months: 0.76 (0.57–0.82) | NS | |||
| Separate UCI control | Separate UCI control | |||
| 12 months: 0.71 (0.58–0.78) | 12 months: 0.66 (0.53–0.78) | NS | ||
| 24 months: 0.71 (0.62–0.82) | 24 months: 0.74 (0.55–0.82) | NS | ||
| PedsQLc | Own control (pre-BCI) | Own control (pre-BCI) | ||
| 0.85 (0.78–0.89) | 12 months: 0.81 (0.72–0.90) | NS | ||
| 24 months: 0.82 (0.67–0.89) | NS | |||
| Separate UCI control | Separate UCI control | |||
| 12 months: 0.84 (0.69–0.94) | 12 months: 0.81 (0.72–0.90) | NS | ||
| 24 months: 0.88 (0.69–0.94) | 24 months: 0.82 (0.67–0.89) | NS | ||
| GCBId | NA | 12 months: NA | NA | |
| 24 months: 10.42 (5.73–32.3) | < .001 | |||
| NCIQe | Own control (pre-BCI) | Own control (pre-BCI) | ||
| 0.74 (0.66–0.82) | 12 months: 0.78 (0.69–0.84) | NS | ||
| 24 months: 0.79 (0.71–0.87) | .02 | |||
| Separate UCI control | Separate UCI control | |||
| 12 months: 0.84 (0.71–0.88) | 12 months: 0.78 (0.69–0.84) | NS | ||
| 24 months: 0.81 (0.71–0.89) | 24 months: 0.79 (0.71–0.87) | NS |
Abbreviations: BCI, bilateral cochlear implantation; GCBI, Glasgow Children's Benefit Inventory; HUI-3, Health Utilities Index–3; NA, not assessed; NCIQ, Nijmegen Cochlear Implant Questionnaire; NS, not significant; PedsQL, Pediatric Quality of Life inventory; UCI, unilateral cochlear implantation; VAS, visual analog scale.
Parents indicated the overall health status of their child using a visual analog scale ranging from 0 (death) to 10 (perfect health). Scores were divided by 10.
The Health Utility Index–3 measures eight domains of general health status.79 The parent proxy version has been validated for children aged 5 years or older.105 The responses are combined into a composite health utility index score between 0 (dead) and 1 (perfect health).
The Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory measures four domains of health-related quality of life.106 Parents complete the parent-proxy version, and children 5 years and older complete the children's version, along with an experienced pediatric clinician. Ratings are given on a Likert scale, ranging from 1 “never a problem” to 5 “almost always a problem,” with total scores ranging from 0 to 100. For children aged 5 to 7 years, ratings are given on a three-point scale. Scores are divided by 100.
The Glasgow Children's Benefit Inventory measures and evaluates a child's health benefit in four domains (emotion, physical health, learning, and vitality) after a hearing intervention. The inventory uses a Likert scale, from 1 “much better” to 5 “much worse”.107 Scores are then converted to range from −100 (maximum harm) to +100 (maximum benefit). The inventory was completed once by the parents, 24 months after bilateral cochlear implantation. Parents of children with a unilateral cochlear implant did not fill out the inventory.
The Nijmegen Cochlear Implant Questionnaire assesses the health-related quality of life in three domains for users of cochlear implants. The physical domain assesses basic sound perception, advanced sound perception, and speech production. The social domain assesses activity and social interaction. The psychological function domain assesses self-esteem. Each question has a three-point response to indicate the degree to which the statement is true. The higher the score, the higher the reported quality of life.80