Baby Hearing Test

[gregtheguineapig]

My baby girl is 2 months old. She failed her newborn screening test in one ear so was referred for follow up tests. We had a test yesterday and the 'good' ear is now as bad as the bad ear was i.e. she can only hear talking voices rather than whispers (about 50 decibels rather than 35 which is normal).

We are now being referred as she has a mild hearing loss in both ears.

Please can anyone give me some advice as to what happens next? Does anyone else have or know of a child with a mild hearing loss and how has it affected them?

When I clap my hands near her or try to startle her she often doesn't show any signs of hearing yet when my Father coughed loudly yesterday she startled so can babies have varied hearing? I can't understand why she doesn't startle or acknowledge every sound.

Please help. I am very worried, my eldest child is disabled (in a different way but we have had our fair share of worry and anxious times) and I feel so deflated that our new baby is having problems.

Thank you.

[tooloudhere]

I have actually seen your blog, read it through tears on googling the diagnosis. It does seem to be a confusing condition not just for us but for the professionals aswell as nobody can give us any facts or answers.

[hatchypom]

hi

Sorry, back on here again. google alicesears and you'll find me and my dd

we didn't notice that she was deaf until around 14 months when speech wasn't developing, she would turn to sound and then at times completely igonore it. pre implant at 2 she had no speech. catch me on the blog, we've become experts. also there's a really good US yahoo group. Good luck, get yourself to a good paediatric audiologist and get tested regularly. The outcomes vary so much depending on the severity and cause. We don't know the cause and DD moved to profoundly deaf from mild over a few months. So we felt the implant was her best option for developing speech. She's now 3.5 and only around 8 months behind in her speech and language.

[tooloudhere]

sorry to hijack but hatchypom we have just had ANSD diagnosed in my youngest and we are confused. He is making good cooing noises but reacts to no noise around him, did your dd react to noise as a baby and learn to talk or did speech come when the implant was done.

We have just been contacted by the special needs deaf teacher but have not had a visit yet.

[WanderingSheep]

I've been partially deaf since birth. TBH, it hasn't affected me in the slightest. My mum and dad only found out when I was around 1 year but I was already talking due to lip reading. I went to mainstream school and apart from having to have regular hearing tests, appointments to refit moulds to hearing aids etc nothing has been any different. I don't know any different anyway.

My DH's second cousin (6) is also partially deaf and wears two hearing aids. Her hearing loss has only just been discovered. She hasn't had any problems (that I know of) and seems to have adjusted to wearing hearing aids really well (I imagine that having to suddenly start wearing them might be difficult, I wouldn't know as I've worn them as long as I can remember!) The only thing that she does have that I didn't is speech therapy, although to me she sounds like a very articulate 6 year old!

[hatchypom]

To add some more info, variable hearing is not unusual, my DD passed her newborn hearing test (and still would) despite her hearing problems. Get a good paedeatric audiologist and don't worry, You've found out early. The NDCS also has a forum which can offer help and they run newly diagnosed courses and local groups. My DD is mainstreamed schooled and speaks normally, albeit she now has a cochlear implant which means she hears at the same level as me now.

[hatchypom]

My DD is profoundly deaf, the NDCS is fab but you should also get referred to a Teacher of the Deaf from your local council. They will help you understand everything that's going on. A 50db hearing level is easily adjusted with aids. Have they told you what the cause of the problem is ? My daughter has a fairly rare hearing loss called ANSD, which means the hair cells in her ear don't work properly.

[lottiejenkins]

Hi greg, My son Wilf has a profound hearing loss. I have had a lot of support from the National Deaf Childrens Society.
this is their discussion and advice page
Hope this is of some use to you. Do feel free to message me on here if you like.