The effect of short-term auditory deprivation on the control of intraoral pressure in pediatric cochlear implant users

The purpose of this study was to determine whether 2 speech measures (peak intraoral air pressure [IOP] and IOP duration) obtained during the production of intervocalic stops would be altered as a function of the presence or absence of auditory stimulation provided by a cochlear implant (CI). Five pediatric Cl users were required to produce repetitions of the words puppy and baby with their CIs turned on. The Cls were then turned off for 1 hr, at which time the speech sample was repeated with the Cl still turned off. Seven children with normal hearing formed a comparison group. They were also tested twice, with a 1-hr intermediate interval. IOP and IOP duration were measured for the medial consonant in both auditory conditions. The results show that auditory condition affected peak IOP more so than IOP duration. Peak IOP was greater for /p/ than /b/ with the Cl off, but some participants reduced or reversed this contrast when the Cl was on. The findings suggest that different speakers with Cls may use different speech production strategies as they learn to use the auditory signal for speech.