[Evoked otoacoustic emissions in the neonatal hearing screening]

Early identification of hearing impairment in children is a major problem for clinical research and development. Transient click evoked otoacoustic emissions (TEOAE) have been shown to be a useful test of hearing impairment, especially when used for infant screening. The purpose of this study was evaluation of transiently evoked otoacoustic emissions (TEOAE) for the two-stage screening of infant hearing. The first stage was measurement of otoacoustic emissions. TEOAE were performed in 200 infants. 17.5% of the children exhibited risk factors for hearing impairment. Those failing the second stage proceeded to auditory brain-stem response (ABR). The absence of TEOAE in both ears in 2 children was detected by ABR. The data obtained show that two stage newborn hearing screening is practicable, effective, low-cost and safe.