Behavioral Audiology Procedures in Children With Down Syndrome
Emily E Nightengale1, Kristine Wolter-Warmerdam1, Patricia J Yoon1,2
1Children's Hospital Colorado, Aurora.
American Journal of Audiology
|June 17, 2020
Summary
Children with Down syndrome (DS) require adapted audiologic testing. Reliable behavioral hearing tests are achievable at specific ages, with results guiding optimal procedures for this population.
Area of Science:
- Audiology
- Pediatrics
- Genetics
Background:
- Standard audiologic testing guidelines are based on the general population.
- Children with Down syndrome (DS) present unique cognitive and developmental challenges impacting audiological assessments.
- Existing normative data may not accurately reflect the needs of children with DS.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine optimal behavioral audiologic testing procedures for children with Down syndrome (DS).
- To establish age-specific guidelines for reliable audiological evaluations in children with DS.
- To address the limitations of standard testing protocols for this population.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of audiological evaluations for 273 children with Down syndrome (DS).
- Data collected from a large pediatric hospital during 2013.
- Inclusion criteria focused on children with DS undergoing audiology assessments.
Main Results:
- Age ranges for completing specific audiometry procedures in children with DS are identified.
- Reliable behavioral testing in children with DS is delayed by up to 30 months compared to typically developing children.
- Good-to-fair reliability achieved by 85.7% at 16 months and 76.1% for two-ear results between 6-10 years.
Conclusions:
- Standard audiologic guidelines are insufficient for children with Down syndrome (DS).
- This study provides a guide for age-appropriate audiologic test procedures for children with DS.
- Findings support the need for tailored audiological approaches in pediatric populations with genetic syndromes.
