Speech recognition in children with cochlear implants using two different speech processors Reconhecimento de fala em crianças usuárias de implante coclear utilizando dois diferentes processadores de fala

Purpose: To study comparatively the speech recognition skills in quiet and noise background situation in children with cochlear implants using two different speech processors. Methods: It was evaluated 26 children with cochlear implant device Nucleus 24M or 24K, Cochlear Corporation, divided in two groups according to the speech processor used. The Group 1 consisted of 16 children who used the Sprint processor and the Group 2 consisted of 10 children who used the Freedom processor. The Hearing in Noise Test – Portuguese version of Brazil was applied in the sound field in silence and in the presence of noise background situation. Results: The speech recognition performance of Group 2 (Freedom) was higher than Group 1 (Sprint) in all evaluation situations, with significant difference between groups only on quiet situation. Conclusion: The speech processor showed significant influence on speech perception in children users of Nucleus 24K and 24M cochlear implants. The components of the signal processing available on the Nucleus Freedom processor may have contributed to the better speech recognition performance of Group 2. Further research is needed to complement these findings.