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Updated: Jul 16, 2026
Behavioral Assessment of Hearing in 2 to 4 Year-old Children: A Two-interval, Observer-based Procedure Using Conditioned Play-based Responses
Published on: January 23, 2017
Developmental outcomes of children with hearing loss born in Colorado hospitals with and without universal newborn
C Yoshinaga-Itano1, D Coulter, V Thomson
1Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, USA. Christine.Yoshi@colorado.edu
Insights
Universal newborn hearing screening significantly improves early identification of hearing loss. Children in screening programs showed better language development, including higher language quotients and improved speech skills.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Developmental Psychology
- Audiology
Background:
- Early identification of hearing loss is crucial for child development.
- Universal newborn hearing screening (UNHS) programs aim to detect hearing impairments shortly after birth.
- Varied outcomes exist for children with and without access to UNHS.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare developmental outcomes in children exposed to universal newborn hearing screening versus those without.
- To assess the impact of early hearing loss identification on language development.
Main Methods:
- Comparative study of children born in hospitals with and without UNHS programs.
- Assessment of hearing loss identification rates before six months of age.
- Evaluation of language quotients, speech production, and vocabulary in both groups.
Main Results:
- 84% of infants in screening hospitals were identified with hearing loss early, compared to 8% in non-screening hospitals.
- Screened children had significantly higher average language quotients (82 vs. 62).
- Screened children demonstrated superior receptive/expressive language, speech intelligibility, and vocabulary.
Conclusions:
- Universal newborn hearing screening facilitates early detection and intervention for hearing loss.
- Early identification through UNHS positively impacts language development and speech outcomes.
- UNHS is associated with a higher likelihood of normal language development in children, particularly those with higher cognitive abilities.
Abstract:
The developmental outcomes of children born in hospitals with universal newborn hearing screening programs were compared with children born in hospitals without universal newborn hearing screening programs. Eight-four percent of children born in screening hospitals were early-identified with hearing loss prior to 6 months of age as compared to 8% of the children in the non-screen group. The participants in the screen group had an average language quotient of 82 while the participants in the non-screen group had an average language quotient of 62. Children in the screen group had better receptive and expressive language quotients, more different consonants in the spontaneous phonetic repertoire, better speech intelligibility, and larger expressive vocabulary inventories. Odds risk ratio estimates indicate that 80% of the children with cognitive quotients 80 or greater or four out of five children had language quotients within the normal range, 80 or greater, when they were in the screen group.
