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Testing Sensory and Multisensory Function in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder
Published on: April 22, 2015
Hearing testing in autistic spectrum disorder: is it unnecessary in low and middle-income countries?
1Tripoli University Hospital, Tripoli, Libya.
Insights
Auditory brainstem response (ABR) testing is not routinely needed for all children with autistic spectrum disorder. ABR is only recommended when hearing concerns are present, improving healthcare efficiency in low-resource settings.
Area of Science:
- Neurodevelopmental disorders
- Pediatric audiology
- Global health
Background:
- Healthcare systems in low and middle-income countries face significant challenges.
- Essential to identify cost-effective diagnostic tools for common childhood conditions.
- Auditory brainstem response (ABR) is a specialized audiological test.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the necessity of routine Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR) testing for all children diagnosed with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD).
- To assess the diagnostic value and practical application of ABR in children with ASD within resource-limited regions like Libya.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective review of medical records for children diagnosed with autistic spectrum disorder.
- Data collected from neurodevelopment clinics at Al-Khadra Teaching Hospital, Tripoli, Libya.
- Study period: January 2010 to December 2014.
Main Results:
- Out of 2368 children with autistic spectrum disorder, 71 (3%) had parental concerns regarding hearing or reactions to sound.
- Auditory Brainstem Response testing identified sensorineural hearing loss in 26 of these 71 children.
- The majority of children with ASD did not exhibit hearing issues requiring ABR.
Conclusions:
- Routine Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR) testing is not indicated for all children with autistic spectrum disorder.
- ABR is considered unnecessary for children with ASD who lack clinical signs of hearing impairment or parental concerns.
- This approach can optimize resource allocation in audiological assessments for children with ASD in low-resource settings.
Background:
In low and middle-income countries where the health care is in a weakened state, spending money on unaffordable and probably unnecessary investigations might be substituted by a reliable, simple and more informative tool that can deal with the problem.
Aims:
To examine current medical practice of measuring auditory brainstem response for all children with autistic spectrum disorder, and assess the value of this test in these children and its applicability in low and middle-income countries such as Libya.
Methods:
We reviewed the medical records of all children with autistic spectrum disorder who presented to neurodevelopment clinics of Al-Khadra Teaching Hospital, Tripoli, Libya between January 2010 and December 2014.
Results:
In 71 of 2368 children with autistic spectrum disorder, the family were concerned about their children's hearing and reaction to loud noises. Auditory brainstem response confirmed that 26 of these 71 children had sensorineural hearing loss.
Conclusion:
We consider auditory brainstem response measurement to be unnecessary in children with autistic spectrum disorder without clinical signs suggesting hearing impairment and without any parental concerns about hearing.
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