Liaqat Ali, Muhammad Ali Khan, Ghulam Raza Baloch, Muhammad Tariq Aziz.
Hearing screening in high risk Neonates.
Pak Paed J Jan ;28(1):1-6.

A total of 100 admitted patients having age range of birth to 28 days (25 patients each of bacterial meningitis, prematurity, hyperbilirubinemia and birth asphyxia, were selected for hearing screening. Patients with major craniofacial abnormalities, aseptic meningitis, renal disease and hypothyrodism were excluded. Hearing screening was done using transient evoked otoacoustic emission analysis (TEOAE) and/or auditory brainstem response (ABR). First hearing screening was done at the time of discharge from hospital. The results were interpreted on pass/fail criteria. Those who failed were again screened after 2 months. The infants who failed in 2nd screen, were assessed for hearing using ABR for establishing degree and type of hearing impairment. RESULTS: During the first hearing screen, 53 infants failed and 47 passed. Out of fail infants 46 (87%) had bilateral and 7 (13%) had unilateral hearing involvement. Patients with meningitis, 10 failed during 1st screen. Patients with prematurity, 20 failed. Patients with hyperbilirubinemia, 13 failed and infants with birth asphyxia 10 failed. In 2nd hearing screen after 2 months, 17 (32%) patients turned up out of which 9 (53%) again failed. Hearing assessment of infants who failed in 2nd hearing session, was carried out which resulted in bilateral hearing impairment in 7 patients (7%).

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