Identification of children with developmental disabilities is the first critical step in providing early intervention services. Currently, only 20% of Taiwanese children who could potentially benefit from early intervention have been identified. One possible reason for this low identification rate is the lack of a culturally appropriate,…

This consensus statement on early identification of hearing impairment in infants and young children was developed by a nonadvocate, non-Federal panel of 58 experts during a 3-day meeting in 1993. The panel concluded that: (1) all infants admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit should be screened for hearing loss prior to discharge; (2)…

This manual describes the screening procedures used to identify infants and children in need of further diagnosis and treatment for hearing loss in Minnesota. It is intended for use by Community Health Service agencies, school health programs, Head Start agencies, and voluntary agencies, and should be used as a post-training reference. Newborn…

This newsletter article describes early identification of children who have hearing impairments in Oregon. Oregon was selected to demonstrate a model system for early identification that had been developed in Utah. A new birth certificate was designed, which enabled the Oregon Health Division to screen for risk factors for hearing loss. A…

This document presents the consensus statement of a 2-day conference which addressed issues concerned with the early identification of hearing impairment. The conference resulted in the following consensus conclusions: (1) all infants admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit should be screened for hearing loss prior to discharge; (2) universal…

Through the combined efforts of the Hawaii Department of Health's Family Health Services and Mental Health Division, developmental and socioemotional screening services are being offered in approximately 115 preschool and day-care centers. This paper provides a general overview of the program and describes its various service delivery models.…

The article reports the frequency and hearing levels used in hearing screening by school districts in Minnesota. Such an array of standards probably indicates similar variation in pass-fail criteria and therefore precludes accurate reporting of the prevalence of hearing impairment in school age children. The need for standardization throughout the…

The incidence of congenital hearing loss in the United Kingdom is noted, and the use of a universal behavioral hearing screen at the age of seven or eight months, implemented by Health Visitors, is described. Procedures involved in identification, diagnosis, and management are discussed. (JDD)

A program was implemented in Oregon to screen infants at risk for hearing impairment, based on a birth certificate question concerning family history of hearing loss and subsequent parent notification of the need to have the infant's hearing tested. Preliminary results concerning efficacy of the program are reported. (JDD)

The importance of early identification of hearing loss in children and progress toward newborn screening is discussed, along with consequences of delayed identification. The history and status of early screening at national and state levels and specific types of screening methods for bilateral and unilateral sensorineural hearing loss are…

This paper describes the need for and effectiveness of a functional screening and initial assessment system for behavior problems among preschool children, called the Early Screening Project. Critical factors in the assessment of young children with behavior problems include measuring the frequency and intensity of problem behaviors relative to a…

This article summarizes data regarding the use of transient evoked otoacoustic emissions (TEOAE) in a universal newborn screening program and describes various facets of program implementation. It concludes that data show that TEOAE can be used to significantly reduce the average age of identification for hearing loss in the U.S. (Author/DB)

Experimental phonological synthesis (sound blending) and analysis (rhyme detection) tasks were administered to children (n=76) preceding kindergarten entry. Measures of beginning reading were administered after kindergarten, first grade, and second grade. The sound blending task was significantly related to most interim and outcome measures. The…

A functional screening and identification system for behavior problems among preschool children, ages 3 through 5, was assessed with 2,853 children from regular and special education preschool and kindergarten classrooms in 8 states. The Early Screening Project procedure was found to provide reliable, accurate, and cost-effective screening. (SW)

Sixty-two children (ages four and five) with mild mental retardation or learning disabilities were presented six cognitive tasks including two memory, three oddity, and a word definition task. Discriminant function analyses resulted in classification accuracy levels of 97% for children with mild mental retardation, 84% for children with learning…