[The profoundly deaf child].

The profoundly deaf child needs special education in order to develop oral language. Digital hearing-aids only provide minimal auditory perception. Before the advent of cochlear implantation, most of these children had severe language retardation and expressed themselves through sign language. Two studies show that the education of the profoundly deaf child has undergone major changes. The first study analyzed language development in 26 children with and without implants, while the second described 556 profoundly deaf children without cochlear implants who attended normal or specialized schools. Now, the profoundly deaf child can benefit from very early diagnosis and cochlear implantation, thereby assisting with oral language development, improving integration within the family; school and society, and offering better quality of life.