Children can only develop spoken language through consistent exposure to the acoustic cues that comprise speech and language. Until recently, hearing levels from the clinical audiogram were the primary measure used to define typical hearing and the presence or degree of a child's hearing loss. While the clinical audiogram remains an important…

Worldwide, 15 million babies are "born too soon" every year (Blencowe et al., 2012; Howson et al., 2013). Remarkably, prematurity survival rates now exceed 93% across all countries. More than 360,000 preterm babies survived in the United States in 2020; 10% of all births (Blencowe et al., 2012; Howson et al., 2013). While this is an…

An individual over age 18 can purchase a hearing aid online or through mail order if they sign a waiver declining a medical evaluation, while those under 18 are required to be seen by a physician to obtain medical consent. However, in many states there is nothing to prevent a parent or caregiver from purchasing hearing aids for their child from a…

The purpose of this study is to show the changing trends within the population of children who are deaf and hard of hearing in Belgium over the last 12 years. The combination of Universal Newborn Hearing Screening programs, early intervention, and cochlear implants have tremendously influenced the education and support of children who are deaf or…

State coordinators of early hearing detection and intervention (EHDI) programs completed a strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, or SWOT, analysis that examined 12 areas within state EHDI programs. For audiological evaluation and services, 299 items were listed by 49 coordinators, and themes were identified within each SWOT category.…

State coordinators of early hearing detection and intervention (EHDI) programs completed a strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, or SWOT, analysis that examined 12 areas within state EHDI programs. Concerning periodic early childhood hearing screening, 47 coordinators listed 241 items and themes were identified within each SWOT…

State coordinators of early hearing detection and intervention (EHDI) programs completed a strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, or SWOT, analysis that examined 12 areas within state EHDI programs. Related to how the medical home is integrated into the EHDI process, 273 items were listed by 48 coordinators, and themes were identified…

Text and graphs describe the Dynamic Range Configuration audiogram developed at the Central Institute for the Deaf in St. Louis, Missouri. The audiogram displays the portion of the average speech spectrum audible to the child, with and without amplification, and can be effective in counseling parents and planning appropriate amplification.…

Installation of a test room and associated equipment for testing hearing represents a major financial investment. A room that is improperly selected or installed will not meet accepted standards for work with hearing impaired clients. Characteristics which must be considered are degree of residual noise, physical configuration, and hearing test…

This paper examines the special considerations involved in selecting a speech perception test battery for young deaf children. The auditory-only tests consisted of closed-set word identification tasks and minimal-pairs syllable tasks. Additional tests included identification of words in sentences, open-set word recognition, and evaluation of…

Insertion of a dead hearing aid in 15 otologically normal children (ages 4-6) resulted in a mean hearing loss of 25-30 dB. Results suggest that sensorineural hearing losses of 50 dB may increase to 80 dB with nonfunctioning aids in place, compounding a hearing-impaired child's existing communication and educational difficulties. (Author/VW)

The relationship between word and stress pattern recognition ability and hearing level was explored by administering the Children's Auditory Test to hearing-impaired young adults (N=27). For word recognition, subjects with average hearing loss between 85 and 100 decibels demonstrated a wide range of performance not predictable from their…

Seventy-three children (ages 4-18) with hearing impairments were administered the Auditory Perception of Alphabet Letters test. Results indicated excellent reliability, and high intercorrelations with both open-set and closed-set auditory tests. The study concludes that spoken names of alphabet letters can be employed as an effective auditory…

Temporal envelope and spectral cue resolution were evaluated simultaneously in seven adults with severe/profound hearing impairments. Results revealed that the Auditory Numbers Test (ANT) is differentially sensitive to responses based upon gross temporal envelope and spectral cues in the speech signal. The ANT is endorsed as a screening tool for…

Fifty-four audiologists were asked to predict future speech intelligibility in hearing-impaired children based on four pure-tone audiograms. Predictions varied significantly with degree of loss and status of high-frequency hearing. Audiologists with greater clinical experience had less faith in audiograms as predictors of speech skills than had…