Outcomes in Mild to Moderately-Severe Hearing Impairment in Children: Recent Research Findings and Clinical Applications

Abstract

Work at Boys Town National Research Hospital, in both the Hearing and Amplification Research Laboratory and the Infant Development Laboratory, has focused on the optimization of amplification for infants and young children for many years. In this paper we review recent work, including outcomes in a five-year longitudinal study of children with early-identified hearing loss compared to normal-hearing peers. Findings in studies of hearing-aid bandwidth and noise-reduction strategies also are reviewed, and clinical implications are discussed.