Follow-up hearing screening for at-risk infants

Area of Science:

• Neonatal care
• Audiology
• Public health

Background:

• Infants with prolonged neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) stays are at higher risk for hearing loss.
• Newborn hearing screening (NBHS) aims to identify hearing impairments early.
• Adherence to audiology follow-up is crucial for timely diagnosis and intervention.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the rate of audiology follow-up completion by 9 months in infants with NICU stay >5 days who passed NBHS.
• To identify factors associated with audiology follow-up completion.
• To ascertain the prevalence of sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) detected on rescreen in this high-risk population.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective chart review of infants born between July 2020 and August 2023 at a tertiary children's hospital.
• Inclusion criteria: NICU stay >5 days and passed NBHS.
• Exclusion criteria: Missed/failed NBHS, transfer, deceased, or <12 months at analysis.

Main Results:

• Only 1.8% (13/714) of eligible infants completed audiology follow-up by 9 months.
• Female sex, ototoxic exposure, and Trisomy 21 were associated with increased odds of follow-up.
• None of the infants who completed follow-up had SNHL detected on rescreen.

Conclusions:

• Adherence to recommended audiology follow-up is very low among infants with prolonged NICU stays who passed NBHS.
• Current screening strategies may not be sufficiently effective in ensuring follow-up for high-risk infants.
• Further research is needed to improve follow-up rates and ensure early detection of SNHL in this population.