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Updated: Aug 18, 2026
Behavioral Assessment of Hearing in 2 to 4 Year-old Children: A Two-interval, Observer-based Procedure Using Conditioned Play-based Responses
Published on: January 23, 2017
Prevalence of hearing impairment in siblings of deaf children
Objective:
To assess the prevalence of hearing impairment in siblings of children with profound to total hearing impairment.
Method:
Two hundred and twenty siblings of children at a deaf school in Karachi completed the screening program. This consisted of a questionnaire and pure tone audiometry.
Results:
One out of three (73 siblings) had a threshold of 25 dB or greater in their better ear. In a population, already aware of hearing loss, we note that only fifteen siblings had a previous audiogram. Although a positive family history is associated with hearing impairment in the siblings, no increase due to consanguineous marriages was noted.
Conclusion:
This assessment has underlined the need to increase public awareness of hearing impairment. It has also exposed the lack of it in families exposed to the condition.
