Is intrauterine exposure to COVID-19 infection a risk factor for infant hearing loss?

To determine whether exposure to intrauterine COVID-19 infection causes congenital or late-onset hearing loss in infants.

The hearing screening results of infants born in a tertiary hospital between March 2020 and April 2022 with and without a history of intrauterine exposure to COVID-19 infection (36 infants each) were retrospectively analyzed within one month after birth in all infants and additionally at six months after intrauterine COVID-19 infection exposure in the study group. The automated auditory brainstem response (AABR) test was used for the hearing evaluation.

The polymerase chain reaction test was negative in study group exposed to intrauterine COVID-19 infection. The number of infants admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU), and the length of ICU stay were significantly higher in this group (p < 0.01). Six infants (16.6 %) in the study group failed the first AABR test bilaterally, but five of these infants passed the second AABR test. A bilateral severe sensorineural hearing loss was detected in one infant (2.77 %). All the infants in the study group underwent the AABR test again at six months, and all infants, except this infant, passed the test. In the control group, five infants (13.88 %) failed the first AABR test bilaterally, but they all passed the second test.

Exposure to COVID-19 infection in the intrauterine period does not cause congenital or late-onset hearing loss (within six months) in infants; therefore, gestational COVID-19 infection is not a risk factor for infant hearing loss.