Hearing loss isn’t confined to older adults: children of all ages can experience a loss of hearing. Roughly three out of 1000 babies are born with hearing loss, and its prevalence is increasing in adolescents. Noise-induced hearing loss is largely responsible for this increase. If you suspect your child is having difficulty hearing, seek medical attention as soon as possible. Delaying can have a strong effect on a child’s learning and development.
What Causes Hearing Loss?
There are three main causes of hearing loss in children. Congenital factors contribute to children who are born with hearing problems because of genetic issues, prenatal problems, or premature birth. Otitis media (ear infection) is a very common childhood ailment that occurs when fluid accumulates in the middle ear. This can cause difficulty hearing and, in severe cases, may lead to permanent hearing damage. Acquired hearing loss is triggered by illnesses, physical trauma, exposure to loud noises, and medications.
What Are the Symptoms of Hearing Loss?
How can you tell if your child might have a hearing loss? There are a number of signs that should prompt you to have your child’s hearing tested ASAP. These include:
- A delay in speech and language.
- Failure to respond to loud noises or your voice.
- Poor academic performance.
- Frequent ear infections.
- Disorders associated with hearing loss (i.e. Down syndrome or autism).
- Family history of hearing loss.
How Is Hearing Loss Treated?
There are numerous options for treating hearing loss in children, depending upon the type and severity of their condition. Your child’s doctor may take a wait-and-see approach when it comes to otitis media; chronic cases may be treated with medications or ear tubes that are inserted surgically and allow fluid to drain from the ears.
Permanent hearing loss can be treated with hearing aids, cochlear implants, and other hearing devices that enable a child to communicate.
The earlier you act, the less chance of your child experiencing speech of learning difficulties as the result of a hearing impairment.
Newborn Hearing Screenings
Nearly three of every one thousand babies are born with some form of hearing loss. In most cases, however, hearing issues aren’t discovered in children until they are at least two years old. The first two years of a child’s life are hugely important in physical development as well as in forming emotional, learning and communication skills. Because of this, babies with moderate to severe hearing loss often experience major developmental setbacks.
Newborn hearing loss is very difficult to detect, which is why many cases go undiagnosed until the child reaches talking age. Often, the only way to identify and treat a hearing loss problem when it truly counts is to take your baby to an audiologist for an infant hearing screening.
Despite many years of developing and refining these hearing tests for babies that are just a few months old, studying infant hearing loss still presents many challenges. If you’re a new parent preparing for a newborn hearing screening, there are several important factors and facts you need to know before your appointment.
There are two common hearing tests used for newborns.
The first is called an Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR) test, which measures the response of a baby’s hearing nerve using electrodes. The second is the Otoacoustic Emissions (OAE) test, which uses a microphone and earphone to calculate an infant’s hearing abilities by measuring the reflection of a sound’s echo as it passes through the ear canal.
False positives for hearing loss are common in newborn screenings.
Your baby’s first hearing screening will likely be performed within a few hours or days of birth. Statistics show that between 2–10 percent of infant hearing tests indicate hearing loss, while only 0.003 percent of infants actually suffer from a permanent hearing impairment condition. Rather than a diagnosis, these tests are administered in order to help parents identify a potential problem as early as possible, promoting the prevention of developmental disorders.
Hearing loss in infants is usually the result of a temporary, treatable condition.
The tests used in newborn hearing screenings are accurate; however, they can’t reveal what is causing the irregular results. In most cases, a hearing loss–positive result from the tests indicates an easily treatable problem like a fluid buildup, earwax blockage or ear infection. In other cases, the cause is never identified. Infants with irregular test results will be directed to an audiologist for a more in-depth examination.
It’s important to continue following up on irregular newborn hearing screening results.
Since one in 10–50 newborn hearing screenings indicate a potential hearing loss, many parents are left wondering about their child’s hearing. It’s critical to identify permanent hearing loss symptoms as early as possible in infants, so regularly retesting your infant’s hearing is highly advisable. Talk to an audiologist about your situation to find out how frequently you should test your child’s hearing to detect possible hearing loss problems.
Call Ear, Nose & Throat Consultants at (605) 217-4320 for more information or to schedule an appointment.