Newborn Testing and Infant Hearing Care

Hearing loss interrupts lives at any age, but imagine its impact on a newborn infant.

If your baby 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 in infants is critical. Cayman Hearing Center places identifying and addressing the hearing challenges of your infants as a top priority of our practice.

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Common Causes of Hearing Loss In Infants

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.

Genetic conditions account for 50% or more of congenital hearing loss cases, while the remaining causes can be linked to various causes like prenatal infections, illnesses, and toxins consumed by the mother during pregnancy, as well as an infection developed within the womb, premature birth, gestational diabetes, toxemia during pregnancy, and a lack of oxygen (anoxia).

Newborn hearing screenings identify congenital hearing loss early on, making it possible to limit the impact of hearing loss and maximize auditory function for children during development.

Infant Hearing Tests

Approximately 0.1% of newborns in Europe and North America are born with a hearing loss of more than 40 decibels (dB), according to CDC statistics.

To achieve the best possible results from therapeutic interventions for babies with a hearing loss, treatment needs to begin before your child is six months old.

The significant negative impact on speech and language development on children has led many United Kingdom territories to mandate screening infants for hearing loss at birth.

Should your infant not pass the initial newborn screening, your hospital may schedule an additional diagnostic ABR/DPOAE screening with an audiologist from Cayman Hearing Center after your baby is released.

How to Prepare for an Infant Hearing Test

For a child or infant diagnostic hearing exam at Cayman Hearing Center, your baby should be tired and hungry so that the parent can feed the infant during the exam. This makes things run a lot smoother during testing. In addition, please refrain from applying hair gels, lotions, or earrings to your child on the day of testing.

Distortion Product Otoacoustic Emissions (DPOAE) Tests

This test involves inserting a tiny probe that emits a series of sounds into the entrance of your baby’s ear canal. DPOAEs are distorted sounds generated by the cochlea’s outer hair cells that occur in response to two tones that are close in frequency. The presence of a DPOAE response indicates that your child’s cochlear amplifier is functioning properly.

Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR) Test

Imagine a pair of tiny headphones/earbuds that fit into your baby’s ears. That’s what your audiologist will use, along with an array of electrodes placed on his/her scalp. As sounds are transmitted into your baby’s ears, the ABR system will measure auditory neural synchrony. Abnormal measurements could be an indicator of hearing problems.

What the Test Results Mean

A newborn who receives a refer or did not pass result during the initial hearing tests may not necessarily have an auditory loss. In fact, close to 90% of newborn babies who don’t pass their first screening usually pass a subsequent test. Common failures of initial screenings often include too much earwax, vernix, or fluid in the ear.

There are three result scenarios from an infant hearing test:

  1. Testing indicates hearing loss in one or both ears. Treatment will start within the first six months of life in order to provide an adequate opportunity for proper development.
  2. Your baby may pass the newborn hearing screening, but could experience hearing loss later on in childhood. Ongoing screenings and monitoring of factors that could lead to acquired hearing loss is advised.
  3. Your baby may pass the initial screening, but with some indicators that your baby might develop late-onset hearing loss due to genetic disposition, infections and illnesses, exposure to secondhand smoke, or NICU treatments, which means testing will be repeated between 9 mos – 1 yr.

Treatment Solutions For Hearing Loss In Infants

Treatment solutions prescribed depend on your baby’s overall health and the cause of the hearing loss. The one thing that is constant is the fact that treatment needs to begin as soon as possible and before he or she is 6 months old. Common interventions and treatments may include:

Cochlear implants

Babies as young as one year old may get a cochlear implant. It doesn’t give a baby complete hearing, but it can give a baby a sense of sound. Audiologists and speech therapists can help your baby learn to hear through the implant and develop speech, language, and social skills.

Speech therapy

This therapy helps your child learn how to speak more clearly or communicate in other ways by helping him or her learn how to make sounds, improve their voice, and interact with others.

Learning special language skills

Children with a hearing loss may need special language skills to communicate with others, such as American Sign Language (also called ASL), which uses the shape, placement, and movement of hands along with facial expressions and body movement to communicate.

Surgery

Surgery can sometimes correct any structural issues of the outer and middle ears that cause hearing loss. 

Hearing aids

Hearing aids make sounds louder and clearer, helping babies as young as 1 month old. 

Schedule an Infant Hearing Test 

You’re in a race against the clock when it comes to addressing the critical issues of infant hearing loss. Early detection leads to the best intervention outcomes.

If you have an infant who requires an initial or follow-up screening, complete and submit the adjacent form to schedule a child hearing test at Cayman Hearing Center.

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FAQs

About Newborn and Infant Hearing Care

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Why does my baby’s hearing need to be tested?
Babies begin developing hearing, language, and communication skills as soon as they are born, so it’s important to diagnose any hearing challenges early on in order to prevent delays in development.
Why do I need to provide a family history of hearing loss before my baby’s screening?
Fifty percent of hearing loss cases in infants are linked to genetic causes, so knowing your family’s history with hearing loss is an important piece of the puzzle when diagnosing hearing loss in babies.
How do you check my baby’s hearing?
There are two types of hearing screening methods, which are explained on this page. Most babies sleep through the screening, and the results are available when the test is complete as a Pass or Refer.
What does a test result “pass” mean?
Pass means no further testing is needed at this time. Your baby’s hearing could change later in childhood.
What does a test result “refer” mean?
Refer means that your baby did not pass the hearing screening in one or both ears, and further testing is necessary to determine if your baby is experiencing a hearing loss.
Will the hearing screening hurt my baby?
No. The screening is safe, quick, and painless. In fact, most babies sleep through it.
How long does an infant hearing screening take?
Usually only 10 to 15 minutes, depending on how quiet your baby is during the screening.

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