Children’s Testing and Hearing Care
Hearing loss interrupts lives as every age, but it is even more disruptive to the lives children.
If your child doesn’t hear well, it could delay their speech and language development skills, hold them back in school, and limit the development of his or her socialization skills.
Early diagnosis of hearing loss is a critical. Cayman Hearing Center places identifying and addressing the hearing challenges of your children a top priority of our practice.
Common Causes of Hearing Loss in Children
Congenital Hearing Loss
Most fetuses have already developed their hearing by 16 weeks after conception. When proper or full development does not occur before birth, babies are born with hearing difficulties or a “congenital” hearing loss.
Acquired Hearing Loss
If your child’s hearing impairment shows up after birth, it is classified as acquired hearing loss regardless of its cause.
Various factors that contribute to acquired hearing loss are frequent ear infections, ototoxic drugs, meningitis, measles, encephalitis, chickenpox, influenza, mumps, head injuries, and frequent or ongoing exposure to loud noise.
Otitis Media
Otitis media is the most common cause of hearing loss in children. Also known as a middle ear infection, it involves inflammation of the middle ear, just behind the eardrum, and is often due to an obstruction in the Eustachian tube between the middle ear and the back of the throat.
Seeking treatment for otitis media as early as possible, which sometimes requires the insertion of tubes to help with drainage, helps prevent permanent damage to your child’s hearing.
Noise-Induced Hearing Loss
Noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) is among the primary causes of acquired hearing loss in children. Although concerts and sporting events can have a significant impact on the development of NIHL, it is most commonly the result of the use of headphones or earbuds used with personal listening devices or media players that are pumping damaging sound at excessive volume directly into your child’s ears.
You can help prevent NIHL by educating your children about safe volume levels and monitoring the volume on your child’s device, as well as ensuring that your child wears hearing protection when exposed to noise from lawn and garden equipment, concerts and sporting events, and other loud recreational activities.
Treatment Solutions For Hearing Loss In Babies and Children
Our pediatric audiology specialists will put together an early intervention plan within the first six months of age.
This early intervention plan will include input from your baby’s pediatrician, audiologist, otolaryngologist, and/or speech/language pathologist. Once the plan is in place this team of specialists will help guide your decisions regarding treatment and/or devices that will help provide the best outcomes based on the unique type and severity of hearing loss your child is experiencing.
Interventions may include:
Counseling for children with a hearing loss and their families.
Professionals who teach communication techniques to families and children with a hearing loss.
Fitting with a hearing device, such as a hearing aid for kids or cochlear implant.
Family support groups.
Networking and communication among families who have children with a hearing loss.
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