Schoolchildren with unilateral or mild to moderate bilateral sensorineural hearing loss should be screened for neurodevelopmental problems.

Aim: The aim was to assess the rate and overlap of language and other neurodevelopmental problems in children aged 9-12 years with unilateral or mild to moderate bilateral sensorineural hearing loss.

Methods: Caregivers of 24 of the 58 eligible children, born 2004-2007, registered at the regional audiology department in Gothenburg, Sweden, with these types of hearing loss completed the Five-to-Fifteen questionnaire, a comprehensive screening instrument for neurodevelopmental problems. Of these 24 children, 21 were assessed with the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals-Fourth Edition (CELF-4). Children with scores indicating definite problem on the Five-to-Fifteen questionnaire and their parents were invited to a clinical neuropaediatric assessment.

Results: Of the 24 children, 13 (54%) screened positive for definite neurodevelopmental problems. Clinical assessments confirmed the presence of at least one neurodevelopmental disorder in eight of these 24, corresponding to 33%. Seven (33%) of the 21 children participating in the CELF-4 had scores indicating a language disorder, of whom four children had a neurodevelopmental disorder according to the neuropaediatric assessment.

Conclusion: The results support that schoolchildren with unilateral or mild to moderate bilateral sensorineural hearing loss should undergo neurodevelopmental screening to identify possible coexisting neurodevelopmental problems or disorders.