Summary Available on NIDCD Research Workshop on Children with Hearing Loss

The NIDCD sponsored a workshop titled Outcomes Research in Children with Hearing Loss on December 12-13, 2006, in Bethesda, Maryland. The purpose of the workshop was to determine and prioritize research needs and discuss the design of research studies. The workshop focused specifically on children with degrees of hearing loss ranging from mild to severe. Participants were asked to consider not only the auditory, speech, and linguistic capabilities of children, but also to consider all factors influencing the child as a whole, such as family, cultural, demographic and individual characteristics. The goal was to define critical issues, to weigh the pros and cons of conceptual and statistical approaches, and to identify feasible research questions and research needs that could be addressed over the next few years. For more information on the workshop, please see www.nidcd.nih.gov/funding/programs/hb/outcomes/.