Washington, Jan 7 (Inditop.com) Music therapy helps hearing-impaired toddlers acquire speech skills after a cochlear implantation, a new study says.
Dikla Kerem, University of Haifa, Israel, who authored the doctoral study, examined the particular effects that music therapy has on the potential development of toddlers (aged two to three years) after cochlear implantation, in terms of improving spontaneous communication.
“Music comprises various elements that are also components of language and, therefore, as a non-verbal form of communication is suitable for communication with these children, when they are still unable to use language,” explains Kerem.
She adds that toddlers undergoing rehabilitation are under much pressure from their parents, to begin talking, and sometimes this makes them introverted.
The study provided 16 sessions for toddlers after cochlear implantation. Eight of them included music-related activities (games with percussion instruments, vocal games and listening to songs) and the rest involved playing with toys/games without musical sounds.
Each of the sessions was videotaped and then analysed. The results showed that when music therapy was implemented, spontaneous communication was markedly more frequent and prolonged in the children, says a Haifa release.
“Music can constitute the bridge between the quiet world that the child knew and the new world of sounds that has been unfolded following the operation,” concludes Kerem.
The findings were submitted as a doctoral thesis for Aalborg University in Denmark.
