Valganciclovir in Infants with Hearing Loss and Clinically Inapparent Congenital Cytomegalovirus Infection: A Nonrandomized Controlled Trial.

Objective: To assess the efficacy of valganciclovir in infants with hearing loss and clinically inapparent congenital cytomegalovirus infection (cCMV), as there is no consensus on treatment of this group.

Study Design: A nationwide, nonrandomized controlled trial, comparing 6 weeks of oral valganciclovir to no treatment in infants with cCMV, recruited after newborn hearing screening resulted in referral to an audiologist. The choice whether to treat was left to parents of subjects.

Targeted screening for congenital cytomegalovirus infection: clinical, audiological and neuroimaging findings.

Objective: To evaluate clinical, audiological and neuroimaging findings in a cohort of infants diagnosed with congenital cytomegalovirus (cCMV) infection after failure at newborn hearing screening.

Methods: A prospective observational study in the Netherlands, using the existing newborn hearing screening infrastructure for well babies. Between July 2012 and November 2016, cytomegalovirus (CMV) PCR testing of neonatally obtained dried blood spots (DBS) was offered to all infants who failed newborn hearing screening.

Specialized outpatient clinic for deaf and hard-of-hearing patients in the Netherlands: Lessons learned in an attempt to improve health care.

Rationale, Aims, And Objective: A group of organizations and individuals in the Netherlands collaborated to attempt to improve access to health care and health education for deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) patients in the country. The outcome was the start of a specialized outpatient clinic named PoliDOSH. An independent research group was set up to evaluate the effect of this specialized clinic.

Quality of life of children with hearing loss in special and mainstream education: A longitudinal study.

Objectives: To compare the quality of life (QoL) of children with hearing loss (HL) and children with normal hearing (NH) and to examine how the QoL of children with HL changes over time, considering language skills, type of hearing device, degree of HL, and type of education.

Methods And Materials: This longitudinal study included 62 children with HL and their parents. Developmental outcome data were collected at two time points, when the mean ages of the children were 4 and 11 years.

Concise tool based on language milestones identifies children with specific language impairment at 24-45 months of age.

Aim: This study aimed to develop a concise tool with acceptable predictive properties to identify young children with specific language impairment (SLI).

Methods: In this nested case-control study children with SLI attending two special needs schools for severe speech and language difficulties in the Netherlands were matched by date of birth and sex with control children attending mainstream education. This study analysed the predictive validity for having SLI at a mean age of eight years and three months (range 4-11 years) using combinations of six language milestones that were registered at 24, 36 and 45 months and retrieved from the children's healthcare files in 2012.

Children with specific language impairment are more likely to reach motor milestones late.

Background: Delayed language development without an obvious cause is considered an isolated developmental disorder and is called specific language impairment (SLI). SLI is probably the most prevalent developmental disorder in childhood with a generally cited prevalence of 7%. This study aimed to investigate whether SLI is always an isolated disorder or if children with SLI also have delayed motor development.

Healthcare costs attributable to congenital cytomegalovirus infection.

Objective: Congenital cytomegalovirus infection (cCMV) can cause symptoms at birth as well as long-term impairment. This study estimates cCMV-related healthcare costs in the Netherlands in early childhood.

Design, Setting And Patients: In a nationwide retrospective cohort study, 156 children with cCMV were identified by testing 31 484 neonatal dried blood spots for cCMV.

Long-term impairment attributable to congenital cytomegalovirus infection: a retrospective cohort study.

Aim: This study aimed to estimate long-term impairment attributable to congenital cytomegalovirus infection (cCMV).

Method: This nationwide cohort study retrospectively assessed cCMV in children born in 2008 in the Netherlands, testing 31 484 stored neonatal dried blood spots. Extensive medical data of cCMV-positive children (n=133) and matched cCMV-negative comparison children (n=274) up to 6 years of age were analysed.

Congenital Cytomegalovirus Infection: Child Development, Quality of Life and Impact on Daily Life.

Congenital cytomegalovirus (cCMV) infection is the most common congenital infection worldwide and can lead to long-term impairments such as developmental delay. It is currently unknown how this affects the daily life of children and their parents. Children For this study, children with cCMV were identified by testing stored dried blood spots of 31,484 five-year-old children born in 2008 in the Netherlands.

Can You Hear What I Think? Theory of Mind in Young Children With Moderate Hearing Loss.

Objectives: The first aim of this study was to examine various aspects of Theory of Mind (ToM) development in young children with moderate hearing loss (MHL) compared with hearing peers. The second aim was to examine the relation between language abilities and ToM in both groups. The third aim was to compare the sequence of ToM development between children with MHL and hearing peers.

Failure to meet language milestones at two years of age is predictive of specific language impairment.

Aim: This study established predictive properties of single language milestones for specific language impairment (SLI) after the age of four, as these had not previously been reported in the literature.

Methods: In this nested case-control study, children attending special needs schools for severe speech and language difficulties were matched with children attending mainstream schools. Data covering the ages of zero to four years were retrieved from well-child care clinics and the outcomes of 23 language milestones in the Dutch Developmental Instrument were analysed.

Early identification: Language skills and social functioning in deaf and hard of hearing preschool children.

Objective: Permanent childhood hearing impairment often results in speech and language problems that are already apparent in early childhood. Past studies show a clear link between language skills and the child's social-emotional functioning. The aim of this study was to examine the level of language and communication skills after the introduction of early identification services and their relation with social functioning and behavioral problems in deaf and hard of hearing children.

[Young people with Down syndrome: independence and social functioning].

Objective: To determine the level of independence and social functioning in young people with Down syndrome.

Design: Cross-sectional study.

Method: Via the Dutch Down Syndrome Foundation (Stichting Downsyndroom), we asked parents of children with Down syndrome born in 1992, 1993 or 1994 to complete a written questionnaire about their child.

Facilitators and barriers to the successful implementation of a protocol to detect child abuse based on parental characteristics.

To determine the critical facilitating and impeding factors underlying successful implementation of a method to detect child abuse based on parental rather than child characteristics known as the Hague Protocol. The original implementation region of the protocol (The Hague) was compared to a new implementation region (Friesland), using analysis of referrals, focus group interviews (n=6) at the Emergency departments (ED) and at the Reporting Centers for Child abuse and Neglect (RCCAN) as well as questionnaires (n=76) at the EDs. Implementation of the Hague Protocol substantially increased the number of referrals to the RCCAN in both regions.

Practical and social skills of 16-19-year-olds with Down syndrome: independence still far away.

Survival of children with Down syndrome (DS) has improved considerably, but insight into their level of daily functioning upon entering adulthood is lacking. We collected cross-sectional data from a Dutch nationwide cohort of 322 DS adolescents aged 16-19 (response 62.8%) to assess the degree to which they master various practical and social skills, using the Dutch Social competence rating scale and the Children's Social Behavior Questionnaire.

Problem behavior of individuals with Down syndrome in a nationwide cohort assessed in late adolescence.

Objective: To assess problem behavior in adolescents with Down syndrome and examine the association with sex and severity of intellectual disability.

Study Design: Cross-sectional data of a Dutch nationwide cohort of Down syndrome children aged 16-19 years were collected using a written parental questionnaire. Problem behavior was measured using the Child Behavior Checklist and compared with normative data.

Prevalence of overweight in Dutch children with Down syndrome.

Objective: Prevalence of overweight in children is increasing, causing various health problems. This study aims to establish growth references for weight and to assess the prevalence rates of overweight and obesity in a nationwide sample of Dutch children with Down syndrome (DS), taking into account the influence of comorbidity.

Methods: In 2009, longitudinal growth data from Dutch children with trisomy 21 who were born after 1982 were retrospectively collected from medical records of 25 Dutch regional specialized DS centers.