Hearing Outcomes in Failed Newborn Hearing Screening Infants With and Without Chronic Serous Otitis
Emily Y Huang1, Daniel Suarez2, Anna Holley2
1Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
Insights
Infants with failed newborn hearing screens and otitis media with effusion experience delayed hearing loss diagnosis and early intervention. Prompt treatment of otitis media with effusion is crucial for timely hearing confirmation.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Audiology
- Otolaryngology
- Public Health
Background:
- Newborn hearing screening (NBHS) identifies infants with hearing loss (HL).
- Otitis media with effusion (OME) is a common cause of temporary hearing impairment in infants.
- The impact of OME on HL diagnosis and intervention following a failed NBHS requires further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare hearing loss diagnosis and intervention outcomes in infants with failed NBHS and OME versus those with failed NBHS without OME.
- To identify delays in hearing loss confirmation and early intervention enrollment.
- To assess the incidence of permanent hearing loss in these groups.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective chart review of infants with failed NBHS from 2012-2018 at a tertiary medical center.
- Inclusion of 80 infants with failed NBHS and OME, and 55 with failed NBHS and no OME.
- Comparison of permanent HL incidence, age at HL confirmation, and early intervention enrollment.
Main Results:
- OME was present in 59.3% of infants with failed NBHS.
- Infants with OME showed significantly delayed HL confirmation (4.2 months) and early intervention enrollment (5.4 months) compared to those without OME (1.0 and 2.6 months, respectively).
- Permanent HL was identified in 11.3% of infants with OME and 20.0% without OME; however, many infants did not receive definitive hearing confirmation.
Conclusions:
- Infants with failed NBHS and OME face significant delays in hearing loss confirmation and intervention.
- Early resolution of OME, ideally with ventilation tube insertion by 3 months, is recommended.
- Follow-up audiologic assessment is critical for infants with OME after failed NBHS to ensure timely diagnosis and management of hearing loss.
Objective:
To identify outcomes in hearing loss (HL) diagnosis and intervention in infants with a failed newborn hearing screen (NBHS) and otitis media with effusion (OME) compared to those with failed NBHS and without OME.
Study Design:
Retrospective review.
Setting:
Tertiary medical center.
Methods:
A chart review was performed on infants referred to Primary Children's Hospital for failed NBHS from 2012 to 2018. Eighty infants with failed NBHS and OME and 55 with failed NBHS and no OME were included. Incidence of permanent HL along with the age of HL confirmation and early intervention (EI) enrollment were compared.
Results:
The incidence of OME in infants with failed NBHS was 59.3%. Fifty-six percent of infants with OME and 12.5% of those without OME did not receive definitive hearing confirmation in either ear due to loss to follow-up or insufficient audiometric assessment. Permanent HL was identified in 11.3% (n = 9) of infants with OME and in 20.0% (n = 11) of those without OME. Infants with OME were significantly older at the time of HL confirmation (4.2 ± 2.1 months) and EI enrollment (5.4 ± 2.5 months) compared to those without OME at the time of HL confirmation (1.0 ± 1.0 months; p < .001) and EI enrollment (2.6 ± 1.8 months; p = .04).
Conclusion:
Infants with failed NBHS and OME are highly susceptible to a significant delay in HL confirmation or lack of confirmatory hearing tests. Timely OME resolution with earlier ventilation tube insertion by 3 months of age and follow-up audiologic assessment is recommended.
