Schoolchildren with unilateral or mild to moderate bilateral sensorineural hearing loss should be screened for neurodevelopmental problems.

Abstract

The aim was to assess the rate and overlap of language and other neurodevelopmental problems in children aged 9-12years with unilateral or mild to moderate bilateral sensorineural hearing loss. Caregivers of 24 of the 58 eligible children, born 2004-2007, registered at the regional audiology department in Gothenburg, Sweden, with these types of hearing loss completed the Five-to-Fifteen questionnaire, a comprehensive screening instrument for neurodevelopmental problems. Of these 24 children, 21 were assessed with the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals-Fourth Edition (CELF-4). Children with scores indicating definite problem on the Five-to-Fifteen questionnaire and their parents were invited to a clinical neuropaediatric assessment. Of the 24 children, 13 (54%) screened positive for definite neurodevelopmental problems. Clinical assessments confirmed the presence of at least one neurodevelopmental disorder in eight of these 24, corresponding to 33%. Seven (33%) of the 21 children participating in the CELF-4 had scores indicating a language disorder, of whom four children had a neurodevelopmental disorder according to the neuropaediatric assessment. The results support that schoolchildren with unilateral or mild to moderate bilateral sensorineural hearing loss should undergo neurodevelopmental screening to identify possible coexisting neurodevelopmental problems or disorders.