How to do newborn hearing screening and what are the indicators

Newborn hearing is very important. Babies can understand the world through hearing. So how to do newborn hearing screening? What are the newborn hearing development indicators? What are the precautions for newborn hearing screening? The following editor will introduce you in detail.

How to do newborn hearing screening

Newborn hearing screening is to screen out newborns who may have hearing impairments through an objective, simple and rapid method, and further confirm and follow up. Common methods for newborn hearing screening include otoacoustic emissions (OAE) and automated auditory brainstem response (AABR). Both technologies are currently internationally recognized and non-invasive. Most hospitals in my country use otoacoustic emissions for hearing screening, and automated auditory brainstem response (AABR) is mainly used for hearing screening of newborns in the intensive care unit (NICU).

A normal cochlea can produce a very soft sound, which is transmitted to the external auditory canal through the ossicular chain and the eardrum and can be detected. If the baby has cochlear hearing loss, no otoacoustic emissions will be produced, and the otoacoustic emission (OAE) test will fail. The automatic auditory brainstem response (AABR) can reflect the function of the external ear, middle ear, cochlea and cochlear nerve pathway. If the automatic auditory brainstem response fails, it means that there may be a problem in the auditory pathway.

Generally, when the baby is sleeping quietly, place a probe or earmuff of appropriate size on one ear of the baby to start the test. After one ear is done, do the other ear. If OAE or AABR fails, rescreening or referral is required.

Hearing development indicators of newborns

0-7 days old baby's vision development

Babies already have hearing. Most babies can respond to auditory stimulation once or twice within 24 hours of birth, and are also very sensitive to the voices of adults. Adults can speak softly next to the baby and observe whether the baby reacts differently to the changes in the voice.

8-30 days old baby's vision development

Hearing is fully developed, and he will pay close attention to human voices and will also be sensitive to noises. Talk to your baby next to you, and he will turn his head to familiar sounds and words.

Newborn hearing screening considerations

The referral form for newborn hearing screening should be registered, including basic information such as name, gender, contact number, address, mother's name, referral unit, etc.

The relevant information of hearing screening should be kept well, including each report.

Newborns who fail the initial hearing screening should have their files kept, and parents should be informed to bring their babies for re-screening within 42 days to 3 months. Those who still fail the re-screening will receive an audiological diagnosis. Children with hearing impairment and newborns at high risk of deafness should be tracked and followed up, and the files should be kept for at least 10 years.

The newborn hearing screening data in the computer should be backed up and saved.

Paper documents must be protected from moisture, humidity, fire and insects.

The files must be kept confidential. No one may access the files without the permission or authorization of the center director. If the guardian of the newborn baby requests to access or copy the relevant information, relevant procedures must be followed.

What to do if your newborn baby fails the hearing screening?

1. Do a good hearing review

Usually the hospital will recommend that the baby return to the hospital for a physical examination when the baby is one month old or 42 days old. If your baby's hearing has not passed the test before, a re-screening will be conducted. If the baby passes the test, congratulations, the child's hearing is generally considered normal. No further examination is needed for the time being. However, as the child grows up, you are advised to pay attention to your child's reaction to sound or whether the child's speaking age is similar to that of the surrounding children. If there is a big difference, you should go to the hospital to rule out hearing problems. If the baby still fails the test, don't panic too much, because even if the re-screening fails, the possibility of being diagnosed with hearing problems is only about one in ten.

2. Do a diagnostic hearing test

If the baby has not passed the test, you must take the baby to a reliable children's hearing diagnosis center for diagnostic audiological examinations and medical examinations within 3 months (not necessarily until 3 months, the earlier the better). Even if the hearing screening fails in one ear, it is no exception. If the hearing problem is diagnosed in one ear, you should pay more attention to the child's hearing, because the proportion of such children with delayed hearing problems is greatly increased. The three basic tests of high-frequency detection sound impedance (1000Hz), otoacoustic emissions, and auditory brainstem response are required. If they are all within the normal range, it can be considered to have passed the test. If the baby fails, it depends on the specific results. If necessary, additional tests should be done to understand the degree of hearing loss (mild, moderate, severe, and extremely severe), nature (conductive, sensorineural, mixed), and location (external ear, middle ear, inner ear, and auditory nerve) of the baby. Sometimes, some medical evaluations other than hearing are also required. At this time, it is best to find a doctor who is proficient in pediatric audiology to explain and comprehensively evaluate the results of the examination.

3. Action is the key

It should be emphasized that it is not terrible to find that the baby has hearing problems, but it is terrible to take no action. Because even if the child has hearing problems, as long as early intervention (within 6 months), current scientific means can basically make the child speak normally. In the past, it was often said that "nine out of ten deaf people are dumb", but now medicine can completely make "nine out of ten deaf people are not dumb".