Evaluation of visual perception skills and vestibuloocular reflex in children with hearing loss

Visual perception is the process of interpreting the information we see with our eyes in a meaningful and organized way by the brain. There are not enough studies evaluating the visual perception of children with hearing loss in our country. Diversification of studies on visual perception will help understand the mechanisms of normal and abnormal sensory development and better determine the needs of children with hearing loss. Accordingly, the aim of this study is to evaluate visual perception skills and vestibulo-ocular reflex in children with hearing loss. For this purpose, Frostig Visual Perception Test and Subjective Visual Vertical (SVV) tests, which evaluate the vestibular system and visual vertical perception, were applied to 15 children with hearing loss and 16 children with normal hearing between the ages of 4-8 who were included in the study. Additionally, there is no study using the fHIT system in children with hearing loss in our country. With fHIT, vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR) function, which provides clear vision by providing gaze stabilization, is evaluated. In order to examine the relationship between clear vision and visual perception, the fHIT test was also applied to all children included in the study. Additionally, it was examined whether the applied Frostig visual perception test, SVV and fHIT were related to each other. According to the results of the study, children with normal hearing showed statistically significantly better performance in the Frostig visual perception test, left ear fHIT and SVV compared to children with hearing loss. In dynamic SVV, there was no statistically significant difference between the performance of the two groups. Additionally, as a result of the analysis, it was determined that the tests had no relationship with each other. These results obtained, based on the role of the vestibular system in children with hearing loss and its connections with cognitive development, showed that the hearing loss group should be evaluated with a detailed vestibular test battery, included in an appropriate vestibular rehabilitation program, and visual perception skills should be emphasized more. Keywords: Visual perception, children with hearing loss, vestibulocular reflex, subjective visual vertical test