Best age for cochlear implant surgery in a child

Younger implantation (under 12 months) is associated with the strongest language outcomes for severe-to-profound congenital hearing loss. The trade-off in very young infants is the small surgical field — experienced paediatric CI surgeons routinely manage this. For children diagnosed late (age 3–5+), implantation is still strongly beneficial; outcomes depend on prior hearing aid use and language exposure. A few weeks of delay matters far less in older children than in infants.