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Neonatal hearing screening with transient evoked otoacoustic emissions in Western Saudi Arabia
1Pediatric Department, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, P.O. Box 6597, Jeddah 21452, Saudi Arabia. hamedhabib@hotmail.com
Insights
Congenital hearing loss incidence is high in Saudi Arabia, necessitating a universal neonatal hearing screening program. Transient evoked otoacoustic emission screening is recommended for early detection and intervention.
Area of Science:
- Neonatal Health
- Audiology
- Public Health
Background:
- Congenital hearing impairment affects newborns globally.
- Early detection is crucial for optimal developmental outcomes.
- Saudi Arabia lacks a standardized universal neonatal hearing screening program.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the incidence of congenital hearing impairment in Saudi neonates.
- To assess the feasibility and need for a universal neonatal hearing screening program.
- To utilize transient evoked otoacoustic emission (TEOAE) for screening.
Main Methods:
- Screened 11,986 non-high-risk neonates using TEOAE over 8 years.
- Implemented daily universal hearing screening before nursery discharge.
- Conducted diagnostic follow-ups for infants who failed initial screening.
Main Results:
- The incidence of sensorineural hearing loss was 0.18%, with bilateral cases at 0.17%.
- 22 out of 11,986 neonates were confirmed with congenital hearing loss.
- Average age for confirmation of hearing loss was 5.5 months.
Conclusions:
- The incidence of congenital hearing loss in western Saudi Arabia is higher than international benchmarks.
- A universal neonatal hearing screening program using TEOAE is recommended for Saudi Arabia.
- Implementing this program can improve early detection and management of hearing loss.
Objective:
To study the incidence of congenital hearing impairment in the Saudi population and to evaluate the need of establishing a Saudi universal neonatal hearing screening program based on transient evoked otoacoustic emission.
Methods:
A total of 11986 well non-high-risk neonates were screened by transient evoked otoacoustic emission over period of 8 years from September 1996 to February 2004. The universal hearing screening was consequently done in a daily base before discharge from nursery. Those who failed the initial screening were followed up diagnostically until hearing loss was confirmed or excluded.
Results:
From the total number of 11,986 neonates (41.4% male and 58.6% females) examined in this study 10943 (91.3%) neonates passed the first screening step while 1043(8.7%) neonates failed. From the 1043 neonates examined in the second screening step in the 5th day of life, 300 (29%) neonates failed. At the age of 5 months, all the 300 infants that failed the second screening step underwent a comprehensive audiological assessment to confirm the existence of hearing loss. The 278 infants that passed the assessment were considered as normal; while 22 failed and were confirmed to have congenital hearing loss. Of these 22 infants, 2 had unilateral sensorineural hearing loss, and the remaining 20 had bilateral sensorineural hearing loss. The incidence of sensorineural hearing loss was estimated to be 0.18% while the incidence of bilateral sensorineural hearing loss was 0.17%. No significant difference between males and females was found. The average age at confirmation of congenital hearing loss was 5.5 months.
Conclusion:
The incidence of congenital hearing loss in the western region of Saudi Arabia is relatively high compared with international figures. Hearing screening for all neonates using transient evoked otoacoustic emission should be part of the standard medical care in Saudi Arabia.
