Newborn Hearing Screening: All you need to know for a symphonic future of your child

December 11, 2024

Are you welcoming or about to welcome your little angel to the world? Are you a delighted parent to the sunshine of your life, planning to shower him/her with the choicest of blessings for a bright future? This article might be greatly instrumental for you in order to ensure the same. 

Hearing Impairment is an issue that can silently crawl up to an otherwise healthy infant, compromising its physical and mental development. By the time parents realize it on their own, it is already too late.

This article explains in detail about the process of Newborn Hearing Screening, the techniques involved, and the treatment options if the hearing is found to be compromised.



Why Newborn Hearing Screening?

Hearing Impairment can have disastrous impacts on child development, which can manifest in many forms such as language and speech development, emotional disturbances, inability to adjust to society, and poor academic performance.

However, early identification and appropriate intervention within the first six months since birth have proven to decrease the adverse effects of hearing impairment, providing much-needed aid in language and speech acquisition. Thus, look for Sohana Hospital newborn hearing test near me if you wish to find an early detection strategy for hearing loss in newborns.


 

What are the risk factors for newborn hearing loss?

Based on origin, Newborn Hearing loss can be divided into sensorineural, conductive, or mixed-type.  Sensorineural hearing loss is the most common form of hearing loss in neonates, where 50% of children have the genetic cause. Acquired hearing loss is typically the result of infectious diseases, meningitis, or trauma of the nervous system. Hyperbilirubinemia, Congenital Infections, and ototoxic drugs can also be a cause of hearing loss in newborns.

Premature Births, being on ventilators for more than five days, low birth weight, etc. are also prominent causes. However, more than 50% of newborns don’t have any of these risk factors during the time of their birth. Hence, it becomes highly important to take a hearing test for newborn near me for all newborns in order to reduce the risk of hearing loss.



How is Newborn hearing screening done?

The recommended screening techniques for newborns are Otoacoustic Emissions (OAE), and Brainstem Auditory Evoked Responses (BERA). 

Both these techniques are easy, safe, painless, and quick.

OAE is an affordable, easy-to-interpret procedure that provides a sensitive indication of the presence of hearing loss, if any. It measures the sound produced by the cochlea, in response to low-volume sound stimuli. A small probe is inserted into the child’s ear to measure the sound.

BERA uses electrical responses in the auditory nerve and the brainstem. It is performed when a possible hearing loss is detected in a child during the OAE procedure. It is more definitive for detecting sensory and neural deafness.

 

What if hearing loss is detected in your child?

Every newborn must be screened for hearing loss within one month of the birth. Hearing screening is painless and requires just a couple of minutes. It is done mostly when the child is sleeping.

In case some degree of hearing loss is detected in your child, it is not a time to panic! Early detection and intervention can immensely reduce the impacts of hearing loss, you can take a sigh of relief as you've done a good job as the parent to a newborn. Early detection of hearing loss is the first step towards a healthier future for your child.

Every child who is detected with hearing loss, should have a complete hearing test within three months of birth by an audiologist. An audiologist is a specialist who can conduct a series of tests in order to diagnose what degree and type of hearing loss a child has.
 

What should be done next?

Early detection of hearing loss and getting into a treatment and intervention program within the first six months of birth ensures that the child can communicate better, do well at school, and get along well with society.

This involves meeting or working with a professional who can help children with hearing loss and their families in order to facilitate better communication and child development. 

There are certain devices that can be used for intervention in order to make sure the child can hear properly. These devices include:

  1. Cochlear Implant: This device has two parts, one fixed outside the ear and the other implanted in the ear surgically. This device can help children with severe to profound hearing loss.
  2. Hearing aids or earphones can be used in case of moderate hearing loss.

Ventilating tubes, Ear tubes, and FM auditory trainers are some other devices that can be used to ensure a better degree of hearing in children with hearing loss.


It is immensely important to start the intervention in cases of children with hearing loss as soon as possible, ideally within the first six months of their birth. This treatment will not only help your child develop speech, language, and social skills but will also be instrumental in enhancing their personality and shaping a bright future for them. If you are searching for best hearing aid in Chandigarh Mohali or Best Newborn Hearing Screening near me, Sohana Hospital Mohali, with it’s cutting-edge technology and expert doctors can truly prove to be your best shot at shaping your child as a genius he/she was always meant to be.