Ear health and hearing in urban Aboriginal children
Jack DeLacy1, Leonie Burgess2, Mandy Cutmore2
1The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia; Children's Hospital at Westmead, Sydney, NSW, Australia; The Sax Institute, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
Objective:
Evaluate ear health and hearing among urban Aboriginal children and quantify relationships with child, family and social factors.
Methods:
Baseline questionnaire and ear health examinations from 1430 children with diagnoses (0.5-18 years) attending Aboriginal Health Services enrolled in SEARCH. Ear health outcomes were Otitis Media (OM), and hearing loss (three-frequency average hearing loss >20dB) diagnosed using pneumatic otoscopy, tympanometry, and audiometry.
Results:
Half the children 0.5-3 years had OM (51.5%, 136/264). One third 0.5-18 years (30.4%; 435/1430) had OM, including 1.8% (26/1430) with perforation (0.8% chronic suppurative OM, 0.6% dry perforation and 0.4% acute OM with perforation). One quarter 0.5-18 years (25.7%; 279/1087) had hearing loss; 12.4% unilateral, 13.2% bilateral (70.6% with bilateral loss had concurrent OM). OM was associated with: younger age (0.5-<3 years versus 6-18 years) age-sex-site; adjusted prevalence ratio (aPR)=2.64, 95%, 2.18-3.19); attending childcare/preschool (aPR=1.24, 95%CI, 1.04-1.49); foster care (aPR=1.40, 95%CI, 1.10-1.79); previous ear infection/s (aPR=1.68, 95%CI, 1.42-1.98); and ≥2 people/bedroom (aPR=1.66, 95%CI, 1.24-2.21). Hearing impairment was associated with younger age (0.5-<6 years vs. ≥6 years aPR=1.89, 95%CI, 1.40-2.55) and previous ear infection (aPR=1.87, 95%CI, 1.31-2.68).
Conclusions:
Half the urban Aboriginal children in this cohort had OM and two-thirds with hearing impairment had OM.
Implications For Public Health:
Findings highlight importance of early detection and support for ear health, particularly in pre-school-aged children with risk factors.
More Related Videos
00:06Simple Surgical Induction of Conductive Hearing Loss with Verification Using Otoscope Visualization and Behavioral Clap Startle Response in Rat
Published on: October 26, 2019
06:04Systematic Hearing Performance Evaluation Process for Adolescents with Cochlear Implantation at Early Ages
Published on: March 24, 2023
Related Concept Videos
01:31Hearing
00:50Unrenewable Cells
Photoreceptors
The retina is composed of several layers and contains specialized cells called photoreceptors. The photoreceptors (rods and cones) change their membrane potential when stimulated by light energy. There are two types of photoreceptors—rods and cones—which differ in the shape of...
01:31Respiratory System Abnormal Finding II: Palpation and Auscultation
Palpation Findings
During a respiratory assessment, palpation can reveal several vital abnormalities:
01:30Respiratory System Abnormal Finding I: Inspection and Percussion
Inspection Findings
During an inspection, several findings may suggest the presence of respiratory distress or disease. Pursed-lip breathing, where exhalation is slowed by...
01:22Nursing Assessment of the Genitourinary System III: Percussion and Auscultation
01:16Anatomy of the Ear