Year 2000 Position Statement: Principles and Guidelines for Early Hearing Detection and Intervention Programs

4(2)Early Intervention and Family Support• Reaffirmation of the need to provide families with individualized support and information specific to language and communication development to support children who are deaf or hard of hearing by providing exposure to language models at the earliest possible age to ensure optimal cognitive, emotional, and educational development.• Recognition that some families may benefit from infant mental health supports.Infant mental health is a field of research and practice that focuses on optimizing social, emotional, behavioral, and cognitive development of infants in the context of the emerging relationships between parents and infants. Medical Considerations• Reaffirmation of the need for otologic/medical evaluation and management of the newly-identified infant to be carried out as soon as possible following confirmation, in an effort to address potentially reversible conditions, discover associated medical disorders that can impact the infant's general health, and identify conditions that can impact communication strategy choice.• Recognition that Congenital Cytomegalovirus has a larger impact than previously recognized.• Updated risk indicators for congenital hearing conditions, including a new table with specified intervals for audiologic evaluation.• Consideration of reduction in the FDA-approved age for cochlear implantation to less than 12 months.