What is Deafness in children?
Hearing loss (deafness) can vary greatly among children and can be caused by many things. In the United States, 1 to 3 children per 1,000 are born with hearing loss each year. Most children also experience mild, temporary hearing loss when fluid gets in the middle ear from allergies or colds. Sometimes as a result of an ear infection, fluid stays in the middle ears, which can sometimes cause hearing loss and delays in your child’s speech. Some children have permanent hearing loss. This can be from mild (they don’t hear as well as you do) to complete (where they can’t hear anything at all).
What are some of the signs of hearing loss?
The signs and symptoms of hearing loss are different for different children. If you see any of these signs call your child’s doctor or nurse:
■ does not turn to the source of a sound from birth to 3 or 4 months of age
■ does not say single words, such as “dada” or “mama” by 1 year of age
■ turns head when he or she sees you but not if you only call out his or her name: this usually is mistaken for not paying attention or just ignoring, but could be the result of a partial or complete hearing loss
■ hears some sounds but not others
Please click here to view the HEARING LOSS FACT SHEET from the Center for Disease Control
■ does not turn to the source of a sound from birth to 3 or 4 months of age
■ does not say single words, such as “dada” or “mama” by 1 year of age
■ turns head when he or she sees you but not if you only call out his or her name: this usually is mistaken for not paying attention or just ignoring, but could be the result of a partial or complete hearing loss
■ hears some sounds but not others
Please click here to view the HEARING LOSS FACT SHEET from the Center for Disease Control