VicCHILD: Victorian Childhood Hearing Impairment Longitudinal Databank
Synopsis
VicCHILD: Unlocking the secrets of hearing loss
VicCHILD is the Victorian Childhood Hearing Impairment Longitudinal Databank. It’s a Victorian register and research databank of children born with permanent hearing loss. VicCHILD ultimately aims to help children with permanent hearing loss reach their full developmental potentials.
Over 700 families have already contributed data to VicCHILD. The information collected and stored will: help researchers and health professionals gain a better understanding of the causes and outcomes of childhood hearing loss; help researchers understand why some children with a hearing loss do well, while others face greater difficulties; and improve intervention and treatment.
Please note: VicCHILD is not a traditional longitudinal cohort study, but rather a longitudinal databank. Enrolment can occur at any age and any time, with age appropriate versions of questionnaires used. Follow-up questionnaires and assessments (if possible) are given every few years after enrolment. Therefore, not all participants have data for every “wave”.
Summary
| Study name | Victorian Childhood Hearing Impairment Longitudinal Databank |
| Study abbreviation | VicCHILD |
| Current principal investigator/s | Dr Valerie Sung Professor Melissa Wake |
| Current project manager | Libby Smith |
| Cohort representative (study contact) | Libby Smith |
| Postal address | Centre for Community Child Health, The Royal Children’s Hospital, 50 Flemington Rd Parkville 3052, Victoria, Australia |
| Phone | +613 9345 4215 |
| vic-child@rch.org.au | |
| Primary Institution | Centre for Community Child Health, The Royal Children’s Hospital, Melbourne; Murdoch Childrens Research Institute |
| Major funding sources | The Murdoch Childrens Research Institute (MCRI); The Centre for Community Child Health, Royal Children’s Hospital |
| Study website | www.rch.org.au/ccch/vic-child/ |
| Key reference | (none published as yet, currently we only have information on the website) |
| Are data available outside study team? | From January 2016, VicCHILD will be open to enquiries from researchers regarding access to data. Formal request processes will be in place for providing researchers with de-identified data for research that has been approved by both ethics and the VicCHILD chief investigators. For more information about the data available, or how data can be accessed please contact the VicCHILD team on (03) 9345 4215 or vic-child@rch.org.au |
| Study focus | To provide a register and population-based longitudinal research databank of Victorian children born with a permanent hearing loss to create a unique resource for advancing research in hearing loss. Specific objectives are to facilitate population-based research (including data linkage) that will describe secular trends in outcomes over time for repeated birth cohorts; support population-based quality improvement activities over time; identify and quantify biological and psychosocial factors that predict outcomes; and facilitate randomised controlled trials of new management and treatment approaches. |
| Sampling frame |
There are two distinct pathways of recruitment for VicCHILD – prospective and retrospective – bringing in children of all ages. Prospective recruitment Since 2012, the Victorian Infant Hearing Screening Program (VIHSP) has approached, on VicCHILD’s behalf, all families whose child has been diagnosed with a permanent hearing loss. This recruitment will continue indefinitely as children are diagnosed with a hearing loss each year. Approximately 110 families will be eligible each year, with around 70 families agreeing to join (50% uptake). Retrospective recruitment Between 2012 and 2015 (2017 for CHIVOS), the prospective recruitment above was supplemented by retrospective recruitment through three channels:
The retrospective recruitment boosted early VicCHILD participant numbers, capitalising on the rich data already collected. |
| Year commenced | Project commenced 2011 Retrospective recruitment 2012-2017 Prospective recruitment 2012 – onwards |
| Commencement sample | Enrolment, n = 515 as of May 2016 |
| Intergenerational? | No |
| Imaging | None |
| Linkage | Health services: consent to
Educational services: consent to
BioGrid |
| Biosamples? | Yes. Cheek swab and/or spit pot. In addition, permission to access previously collected biosamples is requested for maternal serum (collected during pregnancy) and newborn screening card |
| Ethics approvals or requirements? |
VicCHILD has ethical approval from The Royal Children’s Hospital (RCH) Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC). The RCH HREC is constituted and operates in accordance with the NHMRC National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Research Involving Humans (2007).Participants or their parent/guardian (dependent on age appropriateness) provide detailed consent before any information or samples are collected. Families are able to specify which types of data they would like to contribute to VicCHILD (e.g., a family can provide consent to link their child’s data, and decline to contribute a genetic sample). |
Waves
| Wave | Year | Age (mean, range) | Eligible sample |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Enrolment (2011 – ) (ongoing rolling recruitment) | 4 months – | Normally recruited at the age of 4-8 months onwards, however there is no age limit and many join when the child is older 515 (as of May 2016) |
| 2 | When child enters primary school (approx.) (2012 – ) | 5-7 years | 50 (as of May 2016) |
| 3 | When child begins high school (approx.) (2014 – ) | 9-12 years | 55 (as of May 2016) |
| 4 | When child completes high school (approx.) (To be commenced at a later date) | 15-17 years | Yet to commence |