subject: Exploring The Hearing Test In Newborns [print this page] Every mother looks for ten little fingers and ten little toes. She looks at her sweet new baby's face, and whether she knows it or not, she is not just looking at her baby in wonder. She is noticing and accessing the health of her newborn. At birth, babies receive many evaluations. Nurses or midwives give the baby assessments too. Your baby will even have a hearing test before they go home.
You may wonder why we give every newborn baby this exam. The reason is quite simple really. Catching a problem that early can only be positive for the family and the baby. There are devices that a baby can use to amplify sound. Once an infant with listening loss is identified, we can begin a journey of helping their family find an audiologist to address the issue.
Listening loss in infants can be because of jaundice, low Apgar score at birth, and even from a viral infection that the mom may have had during pregnancy. Heredity can also be a cause. In most cases, the cause is not determined. A hearing test in infants is done one of two ways. Either baby will be evaluated using an auditory brainstem response or otoacoustic emission. Both options are good. Your infant will receive the evaluation based on the training and instruments that your hospital purchased.
The ABR exam will require no participation from your baby. The baby will have as many as five electrodes placed on his sleeping head. A series of sounds described as clicks will be sent to the child's ears. If the baby hears the sounds, a signal will be sent to his brain. The signal that is sent to the baby's brain can be measured and recorded by the electrodes on the baby's head. This test only takes about fifteen minutes.
An OAE hearing test differs a bit from the ABR. The OAE requires a small probe with a microphone and a speaker to be placed into the baby's ear canal. A sound is sent through the microphone and will be sent up to the brainstem. There is a sound that will not go up to the brainstem, but will instead will come back out the ear. This sound is the byproduct and it is being measured by the probe. This test takes about five to eight minutes. The baby must be sleeping through the test.
Having an infant tested is a great way to find an impairment while they are young. Early detection leads to early treatment, and early treatment can often lead to a normal development. Even if you do not suspect loss in your infant, this screening is great way to provide yourself with some peace of mind.
by: Abigail Aaronson
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