Hearing loss in infants and children, whether congenital or acquired, has been associated with behavioral issues, low academic performance, personal-social maladjustments, and lasting deficiencies in speech and language development. Many of these adverse impacts can be avoided or reduced by identifying hearing loss through neonatal hearing screening, regular monitoring of developmental milestones, auditory skills, parental concerns, middle-ear status, and objective hearing screening of all infants and children at crucial developmental stages.
We at SoundLife Hearing recommend audiological tests to help with the detection and documentation of, as well as intervention for, hearing loss to create a proactive, consistent, and explicit strategy for the early identification of children with hearing loss.
Different Types of Hearing Tests for Infants and Children
- Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR) and Auditory Steady State Response (ASSR)
Children are frequently subjected to behavioral hearing tests, in which a sound is produced and the child is instructed to look in the direction of the sound source or to drop a toy into a container when the sound is heard. The child might, however, be too young or uncooperative for this kind of test in some circumstances. An ABR and ASSR are performed as a result of the replacement of or in addition to other hearing tests. These tests can only be done when your child is sleeping.
The ASSR is helpful in providing frequency-specific information, while the ABR is beneficial in evaluating the health of the hearing pathway up to the brainstem.
An audiologist will place small earphones in the child’s ears and soft electrodes (sensors that measure brain activity) near the ears and on the forehead. Clicking sounds and tones go through the earphones, and electrodes measure how the hearing nerves and brain respond to the sounds.
- Visual Reinforcement Audiometry (VRA)
An audiologist can evaluate hearing in babies and toddlers who are too young for standard testing using visual reinforcement audiometry (VRA). The VRA uses behavioral conditioning to instruct very young children on how to react to sounds. It is designed for children from 6 months to around 2 to 3 years old.
VRA is conducted using an audiometer to assess a child’s hearing threshold levels. Pure tone audiometry that are commonly available require headphones and a feedback button, making them impractical for small children. VRA substitutes earphones (often with foam tips) or sound field speakers for the headphones. To “train” the child to pay attention in the direction of the sound, visual reinforcers are positioned 90 degrees to either side of the patient, such as animated videos or lighted toys.
- Conditioned Play Audiometry (CPA)
To measure a child’s hearing threshold levels, Conditioned Play Audiometry (CPA) is conducted using a device known as an audiometer. A patient can respond to various sound levels using headphones and a feedback device with a typical pure-tone audiometer. The user feedback button on the test has been replaced with an activity by CPA because it is difficult for young children and preschoolers to understand. This is designed for kids between the ages of 2 and 5.
- Otoacoustic Emissions (OAE)
Your ear is made up of three parts—the outer, the middle, and the inner ear. The OAE test is used to find out how well your inner ear, or cochlea, works. It measures otoacoustic emissions, or OAEs. These are sounds given off by the inner ear when responding to a sound. There are hair cells in the inner ear that respond to sound by vibrating. The vibration produces a very quiet sound that echoes back into the middle ear. This sound is the OAE that is measured.
The OAE test is often part of a newborn hearing screening program and is administered to young children who may not be able to respond appropriately to behavioral hearing tests given their age.
A small earphone, or probe, is placed in your child’s ear. The probe puts sounds into the ear and measures the sounds that come back. It often takes just a few minutes. It is done while the baby sleeps or the child is sitting quietly. The audiologist doing the test can see the results on the monitor screen.
- Real-ear-to-coupler difference (RECD)
Since infant and early children’s ear canals are significantly different in size from an adult’s and because children’s ear canals change in size often as they grow, using Real-ear-to-coupler difference (RECD) during pediatric hearing aid verification is important.
With experience and the right distraction for the youngster, RECD measurement can be performed in a few minutes per ear for use in simulated real-ear verification measures.
These evaluations measure your child’s hearing capacity. Even while hearing loss can happen at any age, issues with hearing in a baby or toddler can have major repercussions. That’s because newborns and toddlers need proper hearing to develop language. Even a momentary hearing loss might make it tougher for a child to absorb spoken language and learn to communicate.
Through this article, we hope you have a better understanding of the procedures to test children’s hearing conditions. SoundLife Hearing is here to help you and your children to assess, evaluate and give treatment to them. We must keep in mind that hearing loss can strike anyone at any age, but with prompt treatment and preventive measures, we can preserve our hearing health for the rest of our lives if we start as early as now!
For all the children with hearing health needs, visit our SoundLife Hearing Pediatric Center at Setia Alam. We provide all of the above-mentioned tests with the highest quality care for infants and children by our audiologist. With the availability of all the tests and equipment, we are hoping that we can make a difference in the lives of the young ones by promoting early detection and intervention of hearing loss. Contact us right away to act early at 03-33453934.
Our SS2 Petaling Jaya and Kota Kemuning branches also provide hearing services for pediatrics; however, ABR and ASSR tests are only available in the Setia Alam branch.
Come and visit us for more info!
We have 3 branches as below:
Soundlife Hearing Kota Kemuning | Soundlife Hearing PJ, SS2 | Soundlife Hearing Setia Alam
Operation hr: Mon-Sat 9.30 am to 5.30 pm.
For appt booking, pls click this link bit.ly/3Pf0qPN or contact 012-3043921. TQ
Website: www.soundlife.com.my
