Major findings of the LOCHI study on children at 3 years of age and implications for audiological management

Abstract

Objective: This article describes the major findings of the Longitudinal Outcomes of Children with Hearing Impairment (LOCHI) study. Design: A population-based prospective cohort study; with randomized controlled trials of hearing aid prescription and non-linear frequency compression. Sample: 451 children in New South Wales, Victoria and Southern Queensland. Results: Significant predictors of language outcomes at 3 years of age included severity of hearing loss, gender, presence of additional disabilities, maternal education, and age at cochlear implantation. Although prescription did not have a significant effect on outcomes, its influence on loudness and hearing aid safety has implications for management. After controlling for a range of predictor variables, nonlinear frequency compression did not have a significant effect on outcomes. For the same hearing sensitivity, the presence of auditory neuropathy did not have a significant effect on outcomes. Conclusions: These findings form the basis for evidence-based guidelines for management of children with hearing loss.

Key Words::

• children with hearing loss
• language outcomes
• hearing aid prescription
• nonlinear frequency compression
• auditory neuropathy spectrum disorder

Acknowledgements

We gratefully thank all the children, their families and their teachers for participation in this study. Data support was provided by Mark Seeto, Vivienne Marnane, and Scott Brewer. Conception and design of the study was contributed to by Linda Cupples and Greg Leigh. Data collection and management was supported by LOCHI staff under the supervision of Julia Day and Patricia Van Buynder. The project described was partly supported by Award Number R01DC008080 from the National Institute On Deafness And Other Communication Disorders. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institute On Deafness And Other Communication Disorders or the National Institutes of Health.

Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflict of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.

The authors acknowledge the financial support of the HEARing CRC, established and supported under the Cooperative Research Centres Program – an Australian Government initiative and the Australian Department of Health.