[Test for detection of deafness in newborns at risk. Apropos of 1048 tests]

It is a prospective study of 1048 newborns incurring the risk of deafness in three hospitals in Dakar from March 14th to January 4th 1989. It comes out of this analysis that the most important causes of suspect cases are neonatal jaundices, congenital malformations, premature birth. The most frequent reactions are noticed in the members of a bilateral way, unlike the general assumption that reactions are noticed in the head. Out of a final population of 846 newborn, 839 were "normal", 7 were "suspect" (less than 1%). This evaluation would be higher for, among the 202 people we ultimately lost sight of (about 19.3%) were "suspect" without any associated pathology). Finally, the authors are then given the opportunity to draw the attention of the public authorities, the medical staff and the populations, on the importance of detecting early the infant's deafness.