Screening for early childhood hearing loss in Nigeria

Newborn hearing screening has been recognized as an essential component of public health care in early childhood in developed countries. However, such screening is yet to be widely embraced in the developing world. The new national health policy in Nigeria seeks, for the first time, to reduce the impact of permanent hearing loss on early childhood development through early detection and timely intervention services. The aim of this paper is to ascertain if newborn hearing screening satisfies the conventional criteria for a screening programme as an early detection strategy in this developing country. A review of the available literature shows that permanent childhood hearing loss is a significant health condition and its detection through screening with oto-acoustic emissions and/or auditory brainstem response is feasible in the target population. Amplification with hearing aids is an effective and preferred option for early intervention by parents. The risk of maternal anxiety from potential false-positives or the psychological cost of false assurance from false-negatives is unlikely to outweigh the benefit of screening. Newborn hearing screening is therefore a potential early detection strategy for permanent childhood hearing loss in Nigeria.