Neonatal screening for hearing disorders in infants at risk: Incidence, risk factors, and follow-up

Objective. To determine the incidence and risk factors for hearing disorder s in a selected group of neonates and the feasibility of selective hearing screening. Settings. Multicenter prospective trial at five centers in Germany. Methods. Enrollment criteria: in addition to previously defined risk factor s by the Joint Committee on Infant Hearing (family history of hearing loss, in utero infections, craniofacial anomalies, birth weight <1500 g, critica l hyperbilirubinemia, ototoxic medications, bacterial meningitis, postnatal asphyxia, mechanical ventilation >5 days, stigmata, or syndromes associate d with hearing loss), the impact of maternal drug abuse, birth weight <10th percentile, persistent pulmonary hypertension, and intracranial hemorrhage more than or equal to grade III or periventricular leukomalacia on infant hearing were evaluated. The screening procedure was performed by automated auditory brainstem response (A-ABR; ALGO 1-plus; Natus Med Inc, San Carlos, CA). Statistics: univariate analyses of risk factors versus A-ABR results and a multivariate regression analysis were used; additionally, the total t est time was recorded. Results. Seven hundred seventy recordings from 777 infants enrolled consecu tively constitute the basis of this analysis. Mean gestational age was 33.8 +/- 4.3 weeks, birth weight 2141 +/- 968 g; 431 infants being male and 339 female; 41 (5.3%) infants exhibited pathologic A-ABR results (16 bilateral and 25 unilateral). Meningitis or sepsis, craniofacial malformations, and familial hearing loss were independent significant risk factors. Median tot al test time was 25 minutes. Follow-up examinations in 31 infants revealed persistent hearing loss in 18 infants (13 infants sensorineural, 5 from mix ed disorders), 7 requiring amplification. Conclusion. Hearing screening in high-risk neonates revealed a total of 5% of infants with pathologic A-ABR (bilateral 2%). Significant risk factors w ere familial hearing loss, bacterial infections, and craniofacial abnormali ties. Other perinatal complications did not significantly influence screeni ng results indicating improved perinatal handling in a neonatal population at risk for hearing disorders.