Assessment of Hearing and Language Development in Individuals with Cleft Lip Palate

Abstract

Objectives : Most children with cleft palate±lip have conductive-type hearing loss due to otitis media in the early years of life. Due to not presenting required interventions can affect language development negatively. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the hearing thresholds and determine the type of hearing loss and to evaluate the linguistic skills of children with cleft palate and lips without hearing loss. Materıals and Methods : The study was conducted in ENT, Audiology and Speech Disorders Department at Gazi University between April 2014 and June 2017. 30 patients who were between 2 to 20 years old, with cleft lip±palate were included in the study. First, hearing assessments were performed; if individuals had hearing loss, type of hearing loss were identified. Then, language assessments were made on 2-7 year old children who have no hearing loss. Results : Among individuals who had hearing loss (%30), 88% of cases had conductive type and 12% of them had sensorineural hearing loss. Receptive and expressive language assesment were conducted with 11 cases between the ages of 2 to 7. It was observed that 3 (%27) participants had receptive language delay and 7 (%63) had delays in expressive language skills. Conclusion : Regular otological and audiologic follow-up is important for children with cleft lip±palate. The high rate of language impairment in children with cleft palate ± lip without hearing loss indicated that the language development of these children needs to be assessed. The study reveals that these children must be monitored by a multidisciplinary team.