Physician education on infant hearing loss in a developing country

Physicians often account for delays in detection and intervention for infant hearing loss for reasons that are rarely investigated, especially in developing countries. This study, therefore, explores current physician knowledge, attitude and training towards infant hearing loss in Nigeria.

Knowledge of documented risk factors, intervention options and attitude towards timely intervention for infant hearing loss was investigated through a questionnaire survey among 246 final year medical students and 161 physicians drawn from tertiary hospitals in Lagos.

Medical students were significantly less knowledgeable than practising physicians about most risk factors for hearing loss except for craniofacial anomalies, intra-uterine infections and low birthweight. Few respondents (11.4-42.9%) were knowledgeable about the risk of low birthweight and maternal exposure to noise in pregnancy for infant hearing loss. Medical students were significantly more aware of early detection possibility (67.8% vs 38.9 %, p=0.000) and more knowledgeable about the use of hearing aids for babies (57.3% vs 50.3%). Most respondents had a fairly positive attitude towards parental concern and early detection while medical students were significantly more positive in their attitude towards infant hearing screening (86.6% vs 74.5%, p=0.002).

Medical students demonstrated greater awareness of early detection possibilities for infant hearing loss than physicians, although they had limited knowledge of some important risk factors. Continuing physician education reflecting evidence-based trends in child healthcare is necessary, while medical education also needs to be updated periodically.