Communication Development in Early-Identified Children With Mild Bilateral and Unilateral Hearing Loss

PURPOSE: This clinical focus article provides preliminary findings from a multicenter longitudinal study investigating auditory and communication development in children with mild bilateral or unilateral hearing loss of any degree. METHOD: A total of 100 children (55 with mild bilateral or unilateral hearing loss and 45 with normal hearing) underwent 1 or more assessments from a battery of auditory and language measures. RESULTS: Children up to age 4 years demonstrated auditory and language skills similar to those of children with normal hearing. CONCLUSIONS: Factors that affect outcomes in communication development will be explored as additional data are collected in this ongoing study.