Professional paper - UNIVERSAL NEWBORN HEARING TEST - FREQUENCY OF HEARING LOSS IN HIGH-RISK NEWBORNS

The purpose of the study was to measure and study the frequency of hearing loss in newborns at the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics of the Clinical Hospital Center Rijeka, as well as to study and compare the frequency of hearing loss in newborns without risk factors and within the high-risk group.
Patiens and methods: The patients were live newborns included by the universal newborn hearing test. Hearing was tested using the Evoked Otoacustic Emission method (E-OAE). In high-risk newborns with negative test results before their discharge from the hospital, the hearing was verified once again in the age from six to twelve months.
Results: Hearing was tested in 98.1% of all live newborns during the followed period. Bilateral hearing loss was found in seven newborns (0.21%). A statisticaly significant difference was found in the incidence of hearing loss in the group of children with risk factors during delivery.
Conclusion: Our results indicate an incidence of hearing loss of 2, 1‰. High-risk newborns have to be controlled during the first year of life because of the delayed or progressive hearing loss. We have compiled Practice Guidelines for the early detection and systematic following of children with hearing loss.

Keywords
infant, newborn, hearing loss, hearing tests, risk factors, practice guidelines