Related Experiment Video

Updated: Oct 26, 2026

Behavioral Assessment of Hearing in 2 to 4 Year-old Children: A Two-interval, Observer-based Procedure Using Conditioned Play-based Responses
14:05

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

The development of deaf and hard of hearing children identified early through the high-risk registry

C Yoshinaga-Itano1, M L Apuzzo

  • 1Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, USA.

American Annals of the Deaf
|January 20, 1999
PubMed

Insights

Early identification of congenital hearing loss before 6 months significantly improves language and developmental outcomes in infants. Universal screening now replaces outdated high-risk registries for better infant hearing detection.

Area of Science:

  • Audiology
  • Developmental Pediatrics
  • Public Health

Background:

  • The high-risk registry in Colorado historically missed 50% of congenital sensorineural hearing loss cases in infants.
  • Limited data exists on the developmental trajectories of children identified via high-risk screening.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To describe developmental characteristics of children identified with hearing loss through the high-risk registry.
  • To compare developmental outcomes based on age of identification and intervention.

Main Methods:

  • Children with hearing loss were categorized into two groups: identified before 6 months and identified between 7-18 months.
  • Developmental outcomes including language, personal-social skills, and general development were assessed.

Main Results:

  • Infants identified before 6 months and receiving early intervention (2-3 months post-identification) showed significantly better outcomes.
  • These positive outcomes spanned receptive/expressive language, vocabulary, personal-social development, general development, situation comprehension, and vowel production.

Conclusions:

  • Early identification and intervention are crucial for optimal development in infants with hearing loss.
  • Universal newborn hearing screening has superseded the less effective high-risk registry in Colorado.

More Related Videos

Systematic Hearing Performance Evaluation Process for Adolescents with Cochlear Implantation at Early Ages06:04

Systematic Hearing Performance Evaluation Process for Adolescents with Cochlear Implantation at Early Ages

Published on: March 24, 2023

Assessment and Evaluation of the High Risk Neonate: The NICU Network Neurobehavioral Scale19:15

Assessment and Evaluation of the High Risk Neonate: The NICU Network Neurobehavioral Scale

Published on: August 25, 2014

Related Concept Videos

Hearing During Infancy and Toddlerhood01:29

Hearing During Infancy and Toddlerhood

Hearing begins developing before birth. Fetuses respond to sounds in the womb through changes in brain activity, heart rate, and body movements, showing sensitivity to auditory stimulation. After birth, hearing continues to develop rapidly, supporting language learning and environmental awareness.Auditory Acuity and Sound LocalizationAuditory acuity refers to the ability to detect sounds. Newborns are especially responsive to human voices and can detect many speech sounds, although their...
Specialized Care Centers and Settings-II01:30

Specialized Care Centers and Settings-II

Rural Health Centers
Rural health centers are specialized care facilities in remote locations with very few medical personnel. The primary care providers who run the centers are mostly Registered Nurse Practitioners. Here, emergency treatment is provided to critically ill or injured patients before they are transferred to the closest hospital. Fortunately, due to advancement in technology, many rural healthcare facilities and professionals have easy access to diagnostic and treatment...
Perceiving Language Sounds and Structure During Infancy01:20

Perceiving Language Sounds and Structure During Infancy

Infants are born with a predisposition to perceive and categorize basic linguistic sounds. Early in development, they can discriminate sounds from many languages and detect differences in rhythm and pattern. This sensitivity may begin before birth. Newborns exposed to two languages prenatally can recognize both, indicating that fetal language exposure influences later auditory discrimination.Recognition of Familiar SoundsBy five months, infants show preferences for familiar auditory stimuli,...
Specialized Care Centers and Settings-I01:30

Specialized Care Centers and Settings-I

Specialized care settings or centers are situated in convenient locations within the community and offer care to a specific group or population. They consist of daycare facilities, mental health facilities, rural health facilities, educational institutions, industries, shelters for the homeless, and rehabilitation facilities.
Daycare centers
They provide several functions. Some facilities care for healthy newborns and children whose parents work, while others are medically focused and care for...
Early Vocalization During Infancy01:24

Early Vocalization During Infancy

Communication in infancy begins with crying, a reflexive and adaptive behavior that signals needs such as hunger, discomfort, or anger. Variations in pitch, pattern, and intensity help caregivers interpret these states, making crying an important survival mechanism during the neonatal period.Emergence of VocalizationsBy about six weeks, infants begin cooing, producing vowel-like sounds, squeals, and gurgles that often indicate contentment. Between six and ten months, cooing develops into...