Relationship between auditory perception and vocal production in cochlear implantees: a systematic review.

Purpose: To conduct a systematic review of the scientific literature studying the relationship between vocal production and auditory perception in cochlear implant users.

Research strategies: This is an integrative systematic review. The plattforms/databases Bireme, SciELO, Cochrane, Scopus and Web of Science were consulted and the descriptors used were voice, cochlear implant and auditory perception.

Selection criteria: Original papers published in English, French, Spanish or Portuguese involving the study of vocal production and auditory perception in cochlear implant users were selected and there was no restriction about year of publication of the articles.

Data analysis: The studies selected were analyzed according to the author, location, year and publication of the article, as well as for their sample size, type of vocal production and auditory perception assessment and for its major findings and recommendation grade/level of scientific evidence.

Results: The results suggest the existence of positive relationship between vocal production and auditory perception in cochlear implant users, and indicate that the deployment time has a positive influence in this relationship.

Conclusion: None of the selected studies were rated at level 1 of scientific evidence or grade A of recommendation, which is related to the methodological approach that can go with this subject matter. There is great lack of publications relating auditory perception and speech production in cochlear implant users. This gap is even greater when it comes to the adult population.