Why adults choose CI's for their children

[shel90]

How is your son doing with the speech therapy? Are you seeing any benefits or is he looking completely bored out of his skull? Is he old enough for him to ask him about how he is feeling about the 60 minute sessions? It doesn't really matter what we think, because as with everything one man's medicine is another man's poison. I'd never make decisions based on the opinions of others on the internet. It would be the what's best for my family approach. What works for one family, may not work for another.

I agree..

If your son is getting some benefit from it, 60 mins a week is not too bad. I used to spend like 4 hours in speech therapy a week. If he is not getting any benefit from it, then that's something u and your family will need to discuss and decide on what to do about it from there. Like RD2 said, it is up to each family.

I don't know your son so I can't really ensure that my opinion is a good one. Like with some of my students, I feel some are spending too much time in speech therapy and others r spending just about the right amount of time there.

I am not against it but against the demands from the teachers on perfect speech and criticizing deaf children for not meeting goals.that was what happened with me.

 

[rockdrummer]

Originally Posted by R2D2
How is your son doing with the speech therapy? Are you seeing any benefits or is he looking completely bored out of his skull? Is he old enough for him to ask him about how he is feeling about the 60 minute sessions? It doesn't really matter what we think, because as with everything one man's medicine is another man's poison. I'd never make decisions based on the opinions of others on the internet. It would be the what's best for my family approach. What works for one family, may not work for another.

I agree..

If your son is getting some benefit from it, 60 mins a week is not too bad. I used to spend like 4 hours in speech therapy a week. If he is not getting any benefit from it, then that's something u and your family will need to discuss and decide on what to do about it from there. Like RD2 said, it is up to each family.

I don't know your son so I can't really ensure that my opinion is a good one. Like with some of my students, I feel some are spending too much time in speech therapy and others r spending just about the right amount of time there.

I am not against it but against the demands from the teachers on perfect speech and criticizing deaf children for not meeting goals.that was what happened with me.

I'm a bit confused here. If I'm not to consider opinions from folks here then perhaps I am wasting my time. Also I have heard many people say in other threads that much time was wasted on trying to teach them to speak when it would have been better served teaching other things like language, reading, writing, math, science etc. I honestly don't see any benefits from his speech therapy. I am not sitting there with him at school when he gets the therapy so I can't speak for how he is interacting. I have not heard any negative reports but, he doesn't talk and only on rare occasion will attempt to. He makes noises when he want's our attention.

 

[Rollover]

HOPKINS STUDY PROVES COCHLEAR IMPLANTS PREVENT OR REVERSE DAMAGE TO BRAIN’S AUDITORY NERVE SYSTEM
HOPKINS STUDY PROVES COCHLEAR IMPLANTS PREVENT OR REVERSE DAMAGE TO BRAIN’S AUDITORY NERVE SYSTEM

HOPKINS STUDY PROVES COCHLEAR IMPLANTS PREVENT OR REVERSE DAMAGE TO BRAIN’S AUDITORY NERVE SYSTEM
-- Animal study advances call for early implants in children born deaf

New research at Johns Hopkins has clearly demonstrated the ability of cochlear implants in very young animals to forge normal nerve fibers that transmit sound and to restore hearing by reversing or preventing damage to the brain’s auditory system.

The findings in cats, published in Science online Dec. 2, help explain why
Three pictures of auditory nerve tissue (from top to bottom), showing normal synapses in a hearing cat, long and flat synapses in a deaf cat, and like-normal synapses -- short and curved -- in a deaf cat treated with a cochlear implant.

implants are up to 80 percent successful in restoring hearing in young children born deaf, but rarely effective when implanted in congenitally deaf adults, the researchers say.

“What we think this study tells parents of deaf children is that if cochlear implants are being considered, the earlier they’re done the better,” says David Ryugo, Ph.D., the lead investigator in the study. “There is an optimal time window for implants if they are to avoid permanent rewiring of hearing stations in the brain and the long-term effects on language learning that can result,” adds Ryugo, a professor of otolaryngology and neuroscience at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and its Hearing and Balance Center.

The Hopkins team, building on years of experience with cochlear implants in children and adults, now has more evidence to support their recommendation that the devices be installed by age 2, or earlier. More than 10,000 children are born deaf each year in the United States, and an estimated 1.5 million people are believed to be good candidates for cochlear implants.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
You can read the rest on the web. Now I know it's cats and not monkeys.
Hugs, Suzi

 

[R2D2]

I'm a bit confused here. If I'm not to consider opinions from folks here then perhaps I am wasting my time. Also I have heard many people say in other threads that much time was wasted on trying to teach them to speak when it would have been better served teaching other things like language, reading, writing, math, science etc. I honestly don't see any benefits from his speech therapy. I am not sitting there with him at school when he gets the therapy so I can't speak for how he is interacting. I have not heard any negative reports but, he doesn't talk and only on rare occasion will attempt to. He makes noises when he want's our attention.

It's rather hard to advise when we have little information about your situation to hand - we don't even know how old he is or whether he gets only a little benefit from hearing aids or no benefit. If you are seeing little benefit from the speech therapy, then obviously it's time for you to have a meeting with his professional case worker to reassess whether it's worth it and if the time could be better spent in another area.

The only question I have is whether is he gaining any lipreading skills from those lessons? The ability to lipread might come in handy for him later on when he interacts with the hearing world. I remember working with a lady whose first language was sign, she could not speak but she was an excellent lipreader and was able converse with those who could not sign. My nephew on the other hand cannot lipread to save his life, whereas some of his friends can and it has helped them get by.

Personally, if it was me being the parent and based on the little information that you have provided about your son, I would swap the speech therapy for written English tuition to strengthen and enhance his skills in that area. I assume his signing is already up to scratch.

I still think that you really need to talk to him about his feelings about it all.

 

[Boult]

It's rather hard to advise when we have little information about your situation to hand - we don't even know how old he is or whether he gets only a little benefit from hearing aids or no benefit. If you are seeing little benefit from the speech therapy, then obviously it's time for you to have a meeting with his professional case worker to reassess whether it's worth it and if the time could be better spent in another area.

The only question I have is whether is he gaining any lipreading skills from those lessons? The ability to lipread might come in handy for him later on when he interacts with the hearing world. I remember working with a lady whose first language was sign, she could not speak but she was an excellent lipreader and was able converse with those who could not sign. My nephew on the other hand cannot lipread to save his life, whereas some of his friends can and it has helped them get by.

Personally, if it was me being the parent and based on the little information that you have provided about your son, I would swap the speech therapy for written English tuition to strengthen and enhance his skills in that area. I assume his signing is already up to scratch.

I still think that you really need to talk to him about his feelings about it all.

his son had a CI but not a success. turns out his son is autistic right rockdrummer. just trying to recall from top of my head eh.

 

[deafskeptic]

Um.. Boult, I think his son came down with Meningitis and that the implant failed due to ossification issues? I don't recall Rockdrummer ever mentioning his son being austic.

 

[Boult]

Um.. Boult, I think his son came down with Meningitis and that the implant failed due to ossification issues? I don't recall Rockdrummer ever mentioning his son being austic.

hmm.. like I said trying to recall what his son had off top of my head but mine is vague eh.

UPDATE:
Here's trophy for you Your guess was good!
http://www.alldeaf.com/hearing-aids-cochlear-implants/1998-cochlear-implants-3.html#post487309

his son had meningitis and went for ci and it turned out that it wasn't a success.

probably due to ossification;
http://www.alldeaf.com/hearing-aids-cochlear-implants/1998-cochlear-implants-13.html#post494485

http://www.alldeaf.com/hearing-aids...lts-choose-cis-their-children.html#post500859

 

[R2D2]

his son had a CI but not a success. turns out his son is autistic right rockdrummer. just trying to recall from top of my head eh.

Yeah, I do remember that but I wasn't sure if he had a hearing aid in the other ear. Does ossification affect the ability to use a hearing aid or is he so profoundly deaf that there is absolutely no benefit? My nephew gave up on hearing aids as he just couldn't hear anything with them and the CI was ruled out this all being back in the early 1990s.

 

[rockdrummer]

It's rather hard to advise when we have little information about your situation to hand - we don't even know how old he is or whether he gets only a little benefit from hearing aids or no benefit. If you are seeing little benefit from the speech therapy, then obviously it's time for you to have a meeting with his professional case worker to reassess whether it's worth it and if the time could be better spent in another area.

The only question I have is whether is he gaining any lipreading skills from those lessons? The ability to lipread might come in handy for him later on when he interacts with the hearing world. I remember working with a lady whose first language was sign, she could not speak but she was an excellent lipreader and was able converse with those who could not sign. My nephew on the other hand cannot lipread to save his life, whereas some of his friends can and it has helped them get by.

Personally, if it was me being the parent and based on the little information that you have provided about your son, I would swap the speech therapy for written English tuition to strengthen and enhance his skills in that area. I assume his signing is already up to scratch.

I still think that you really need to talk to him about his feelings about it all.

Actually if you research my posts you will find much information regarding my sons deafness. Boult has provided some links that may help you understand our situation. To recap for you my son is profoundly deaf. One ear has a malformed cochlea which was packed to prevent CSF leakage again and the other has a CI that is of no benefit most likely due to ossification. He became deaf at 18 months old due to menengitis from a CSF leak in the ear with the malformed cochlea.

 

[deafdyke]

My thought with Millridge is basically to do what Jillio and DD are suggesting - go talk to them and see what they do and then see if our local district can adopt some of the same methodologies.

Definitly talk with Millridge, but maybe one thing you could do is to have Toes evaluated like at a Deaf School, as to what kind of program might be really good for her. One of the downsides of starting from scratch is that it'll be very difficult to start a program.....unless........maybe you could network and see if there are other parents of dhh kids in your area who are looking for an alternatve to Deaf school and total and complete mainstreaming. Maybe you guys could start an educational collabrative....like a Deaf magnet school......You do have to be VERY careful not to create a general special ed program. The thing is, that those of us with hearing or vision issues need educational programming which is very speific for our disabilty. Some of us can do OK with just Easter Seals type special ed programming, but it's a lot better for us to get the proper teaching early on so we have that foundation.

 

[rick48]

All of the discussion about speech therapy got me thinking as well. My son spends 60 minutes per week in speech therapy. That doesn't sound like much to me and I would wonder what others thought. I'm of the belief that the time should be spent on learning other things rather than learning to talk. What do you guys think. Is 60 minutes a week a waste of time?

Rockdrummer,

When our daughter was first diagnosed she went into a program that provided 2 hours a week of individual speech and language therapy
and then 2-3 hours a week of the same therapy but in a group of 4-6 kids her age. The group quite honestly was more play then therapy. The amount of time involved was the same as if she went into a TC program and all of it was paid by our state's Deaf Infant Program.

What was stressed by the therapist was to take what was being taught in the individual lessons and incorporate them into everyday conversation at home. Can't tell you if 60 minutes is enough or too little or too much but what feedback are you getting from the therapist?
Rick

 

[shel90]

Going back to the topic...had some bad news this week. One boy I know had to go for emergency surgery cuz the device in his head broke and it is possible that irreversable damage has been done. I just cross my fingers that he will come out of it ok. I should know more next week. *sighs*

I know it is rare that this can happen but I prefer that children not be implanted and wait until they are of age to make the decisions for themselves cuz it is their bodies. I dont think adults should choose but again it is their business. If I had a deaf child, I would never choose to get an implant. I know the child can develop language without a CI. I and many other deaf people without CIs are proof of that.

 

[Cloggy]

Going back to the topic...had some bad news this week. One boy I know had to go for emergency surgery cuz the device in his head broke and it is possible that irreversable damage has been done. I just cross my fingers that he will come out of it ok. I should know more next week. *sighs*

I know it is rare that this can happen but I prefer that children not be implanted and wait until they are of age to make the decisions for themselves cuz it is their bodies. I dont think adults should choose but again it is their business. If I had a deaf child, I would never choose to get an implant. I know the child can develop language without a CI. I and many other deaf people without CIs are proof of that.

I'm sorry,
but my feeling is that you still have no clue why parents want their children to hear as soon as possible...

 

[shel90]

I'm sorry,
but my feeling is that you still have no clue why parents want their children to hear as soon as possible...

That's your view..I have mine.

Of course..parents want their children to hear and willing to take the risk on their children. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesnt. It is a gamble, isnt it?

 

[deafdyke]

Cloggy, actually I disagree. Shel and I and MANY others here have experianced what you and other parents of dhh kids are currently experiancing. OUR Parents went through the exact same sort of thing that YOU are. Who knows? Maybe in twenty or thirty years, you'll look back and say "Oh those deaf people were RIGHT!"

 

[dreama]

while Deaf schools tend to be better then Blind schools academicly, Blind schools have something called a short term placement. Most kids at Blind Schools are MR. Most just blind and low vision kids are mainstreamed. But they do go to Blind schools for things like O&M and Braille classes and things like that with tthe short term placement. Wish Deaf schools had something like that.

That surprises me. In England it tends to be the reverse. some blind schools seem to have a much better accademic record then deaf schools.

I very much agree with your full tool box aproach. I know braille and long cane tecniques (as well as having a guide dog) while often these things aren't often considered for someone with any useful vision like myself but these things are a great help to me. I can also benifit from low vision aids too so I'm lucky that way. It's like with HOH that can sign. They get the best of both worlds.

 

[dreama]

HOPKINS STUDY PROVES COCHLEAR IMPLANTS PREVENT OR REVERSE DAMAGE TO BRAIN’S AUDITORY NERVE SYSTEM
HOPKINS STUDY PROVES COCHLEAR IMPLANTS PREVENT OR REVERSE DAMAGE TO BRAIN’S AUDITORY NERVE SYSTEM

HOPKINS STUDY PROVES COCHLEAR IMPLANTS PREVENT OR REVERSE DAMAGE TO BRAIN’S AUDITORY NERVE SYSTEM
-- Animal study advances call for early implants in children born deaf

New research at Johns Hopkins has clearly demonstrated the ability of cochlear implants in very young animals to forge normal nerve fibers that transmit sound and to restore hearing by reversing or preventing damage to the brain’s auditory system.

The findings in cats, published in Science online Dec. 2, help explain why
Three pictures of auditory nerve tissue (from top to bottom), showing normal synapses in a hearing cat, long and flat synapses in a deaf cat, and like-normal synapses -- short and curved -- in a deaf cat treated with a cochlear implant.

implants are up to 80 percent successful in restoring hearing in young children born deaf, but rarely effective when implanted in congenitally deaf adults, the researchers say.

“What we think this study tells parents of deaf children is that if cochlear implants are being considered, the earlier they’re done the better,” says David Ryugo, Ph.D., the lead investigator in the study. “There is an optimal time window for implants if they are to avoid permanent rewiring of hearing stations in the brain and the long-term effects on language learning that can result,” adds Ryugo, a professor of otolaryngology and neuroscience at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and its Hearing and Balance Center.

The Hopkins team, building on years of experience with cochlear implants in children and adults, now has more evidence to support their recommendation that the devices be installed by age 2, or earlier. More than 10,000 children are born deaf each year in the United States, and an estimated 1.5 million people are believed to be good candidates for cochlear implants.

That's really cruel to test on animals just so they can provide more pro CI propaganda. What does it have to do with humans anyway?

 

[shel90]

That's really cruel to test on animals just so they can provide more pro CI propaganda. What does it have to do with humans anyway?

I agree. I honestly do not like John Hopkins' philsophy on deafness. They criticized my school's CI program for having sign language as part of it and that it will interfere with the children's ability to develop spoken language.. I say f*** u to them. They don't know much except for medical issues and procedures. Sure, they know how to cut, drill, and implant the CI and I give them credit for that but to say that about sign language shows that they don't know much about deaf needs. :roll:

 

[Cloggy]

That's your view..I have mine.

Of course..parents want their children to hear and willing to take the risk on their children. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesnt. It is a gamble, isnt it?

NO, it's not a gamble.

Just like getting in the car and going into traffic is not a gamble..

 

[Cloggy]

That's really cruel to test on animals just so they can provide more pro CI propaganda. What does it have to do with humans anyway?

If this kind of will help children getting 2 CI's allowing them even more success with CI, I'm all for it.

Animal research has been done at all times. Many of the medical procedures have first been tried on animals and we all benefit from it.
Suddenly because you don't like the area, it's a bad thing??