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A Sound Beginning for Babies

Early identification of hearing loss, no matter how slight, ensures a better chance for an infant's optimal development and successful treatment. All Hospital Nurseries now offer an effective early detection program.

In 1993, the National Institutes of Health recommended that all babies undergo hearing screening within the first three months of life.

• The Newborn Infant Hearing Screening and Intervention Act of 1999 provides federal funding for state grants to develop infant hearing screening and intervention programs. The Children's Health Act of 2000 extended this Act until 2002.

• The US Department of Health and the American Academy of Pediatrics  recommend that all infants in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) have a hearing screen done before discharge.

• States that mandate hearing screens continue to increase, while federal legislation is being considered to mandate universal hearing screens in one form or another.

• In a study published in Pediatrics, the official journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, children with hearing loss identified before six months of age were found to demonstrate superior language skills over those identified after six months of age.

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How Hearing Screens Are Performed

• Disposable couplers with earphones are placed over the baby's ears, while sensors are placed at the nape of the baby's neck, forehead and shoulder.

• The earphones play a soft clicking sound (30 dBHL) that stimulates the baby's hearing nerves. The sensors measure the baby's response to these soft clicks.

To ensure an accurate result, the screening machine has a built-in rejection system to eliminate certain data. This data may be the result of ambient (surrounding) noise or myogenic noise (caused when a baby is tense, wiggly or restless). If either condition is not "perfect," the  equipment warns that the interference needs to be corrected. Without such a rejection system, more babies may need to be brought back for rescreening or diagnostic procedures because a "pass" could not be obtained accurately. 

You will be supplied with the results of the hearing screen upon discharge from the hospital.  Please bring ti to the office with your first visit.

Click here for information on the New York State Screening Program