Phonological deterioration in adults with an acquired severe hearing impairment.

The study examined the phonological processing skills in a group of adults who have acquired a severe hearing loss in adult life. These severely hearing-impaired individuals performed at a significantly lower level on the rhyme judgement tasks and the letter span task, but on a par with the control group on other cognitive tests. A correlation analysis showed that duration of hearing loss is negatively related to performance on the rhyme judgement tasks and letter span task. The results indicate that the phonological processing skills in individuals who have acquired a severe hearing loss in adult life deteriorates. The results are discussed with respect to theoretical and clinical implications.