CHILDHOOD HEARING-LOSS IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA - A REVIEW AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Nearly 10% of the world's population lives in sub-Africa, a region com prised of many countries with least developed nation status. The regio n has a predominantly young population and many children in the region are at risk of pathologies associated with hearing loss. Despite the constraints associated with low socioeconomic levels, a number of valu able studies have been carried out into the prevalence and etiology of childhood hearing loss in the sub-Saharan region. A review of the pub lished literature related to childhood hearing loss in sub-Saharan Afr ica is presented and recommendations made on possible future research directions that could assist hearing loss prevention and management. ( C) 1997 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd.