Assessment of psychological disorders in Egyptian children with hearing impairment

Impairment of hearing is a common birth defect which may be associated with varieties of psychological abnormalities in childhood. Knowledge and research of such issue are much lacking in Egypt; so the aim of the current study was to characterize and assess various psychological co-morbidities which could occur among hearing-impaired children. This prospective study has been conducted on a total of 40 male children, with age range between 7 and 12 years, divided into two groups. Group I included 20 children with different degrees of hearing impairment (HI), and Group II included 20 age-matched, healthy children with normal hearing. The studied children have been recruited from two schools (Al Amal School for the Deaf and Dumb, and Copts School) at Minia City, Minia Governorate, Egypt. Psychometric assessment, electroencephalography (EEG), and audiological evaluation were done for all included children. EEG abnormalities and anxiety scores were significantly higher in patients group compared with controls (p < 0.05); however, intelligence quotient did not differ. The present study revealed that HI is associated with psychological and EEG abnormalities. Early management of these children is expected to improve their quality of life.