ABSTRACT
Purpose: The purpose of the Listening and Spoken Language Data Repository (LSL-DR) was to address a critical need for a systemwide outcome data-monitoring program for the development of listening and spoken language skills in highly specialized educational programs for children with hearing loss highlighted in Goal 3b of the 2007 Joint Committee on Infant Hearing position statement supplement. Method: The LSL-DR is a multicenter, international data repository for recording and tracking the demographics and longitudinal outcomes achieved by children who have hearing loss who are enrolled in private, specialized programs focused on supporting listening and spoken language development. Since 2010, annual speech-language-hearing outcomes have been prospectively obtained by qualified clinicians and teachers across 48 programs in 4 countries. Results: The LSL-DR has been successfully implemented, bringing together the data collection efforts of these programs to create a large and diverse data repository of 5,748 children with hearing loss. Conclusion: Due to the size and diversity of the population, the range of assessments entered, and the demographic information collected, the LSL-DR will provide an unparalleled opportunity to examine the factors that influence the development of listening in spoken language in this population.
Subject(s)
Databases, Factual , Hearing Loss/therapy , Language Therapy/methods , Auditory Perception , Child , Child Language , Child, Preschool , Deafness/psychology , Deafness/therapy , Early Intervention, Educational/methods , Female , Hearing , Hearing Loss/psychology , Humans , Infant , Language Development , MaleABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: While newborn hearing screening has improved outcomes for children diagnosed with hearing loss, the screening protocol is incomplete in the critical early developmental years, particularly among underserved populations. To address this gap, 7 federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) implemented a periodic, objective infant-toddler hearing screening program during well-child visits. The study aimed to determine the ability of these primary care providers to implement the hearing screening protocol and to identify children in need of audiologic follow-up. METHOD: This study represents a prospective chart review. Children aged 0 to 3 years presenting to participating clinics for well-child care visits were offered the hearing screen, which included a brief risk factor questionnaire, otoacoustic emissions (OAEs), and tympanometry. Main outcome measures were time to screen, accuracy of physician interpretation of the tympanogram results, and screening results requiring immediate audiology follow-up. RESULTS: Among 1965 OAE screens, 75% took <10 minutes, and 205 patients (10%) failed OAEs in at least 1 ear; based on tympanometry, middle ear effusions were present in 102 of these cases (50%), while 45 cases (22%) raised concerns for sensorineural hearing loss. Physicians accurately interpreted tympanogram results in 89% of cases. There were 5 patients identified with confirmed permanent sensorineural hearing loss. CONCLUSION: Findings demonstrate that infant-toddler hearing screening in FQHCs is feasible to conduct, and it may effectively identify cases of postnatal hearing loss. This is one of the first studies in a primary care setting using OAE technology coupled with tympanometry, allowing physicians to better triage patients for immediate audiology referral.
