Home language environment in relation to language outcome in Brazilian toddlers who are hard of hearing and controls with typical hearing - a pilot study including reliability analyses of the LENA recording system.

This was a pilot study with only 14 children analysed, so it cannot establish whether home language exposure differs between children with typical hearing and children who are hard of hearing. One recruited child was excluded because the family did not complete the required recording hours. The sample was very educated: 79% of participating parents had a college degree, so it may not represent families with less formal education. The LENA reliability check was small, based on 7 recordings, and the device overestimated adult words while underestimating child vocalizations. Three hard-of-hearing children were older than 36 months, so DevSnap scores could not be calculated for them, leaving only 4 of 7 hard-of-hearing children for that measure. Pacifier use was noticed during parent follow-up but was not formally measured, so it may relate to some low expressive scores.

Do not conclude that hard-of-hearing toddlers receive the same amount of adult talk as typical-hearing toddlers. The study found no significant group difference, but it analysed only 14 children and the device overestimated adult words and underestimated child vocalizations.