Vestibular System Considerations

The vestibular end organs are the most primitive of the sensory organs. They are essential to the stabilization required for developing and maintaining an upright posture and therefore, serve as a foundational building block for childhood development. The most common group of children who experience vestibular impairments are those with sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL). In these cases, a shared etiology has impacted the structure and/or function of the entire cochleovestibular system. Reliable evaluation of vestibular end-organ function is central to accurate diagnosis of these impairments; however, examining a child’s vestibular system can be challenging. The current chapter will focus on the approach to assessing vestibular end-organ function in children with SNHL, with a particular focus on those rehabilitated with cochlear implants (CIs). The impact of dual sensory impairments (i.e., cochleovestibular loss) on the developing child will be emphasized, and the role of vestibular impairments in the outcomes of children with SNHL who use CI will be discussed.