Infant Hearing Screening in Iowa
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A Sound Beginning for Your New Baby
Why is it important to test your new baby's hearing? About 37,000 new babies are born each year in Iowa. Of these, more than 90 will have hearing disorders. Most babies born with hearing disorders are born to parents with normal hearing. Screening your baby's hearing is important. This is true even if your family has no history of hearing problems. Why is screening so important? Screening is important because so much of a child's ability to communicate relies on hearing. |
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Research shows it is important to identify and treat a hearing loss by the time a baby is 6 months old. When this happens, the child's language ability at the age of three years will be nearly the same as that of a child with normal hearing. But if treatment doesn't happen until after six months, the child's language skills at age three will be about half that of a child with normal hearing.
In other words, it is important to identify a child’s hearing loss by the time the child is three months old. Treatment needs to begin by 6 months. Newborn hearing screening helps to make this possible.
Before your baby leaves the newborn nursery, staff will complete a hearing screening. This will tell them if your baby needs additional hearing tests.
How do you screen a baby's hearing?
The kind of screening used depends on the equipment at the hospital. In Iowa, Your baby will have an AABR screen or an OAE screen:
Auditory brainstem evoked response system (AABR) To test your baby's hearing using AABR, we begin by taping electrodes to your baby's forehead and behind each ear. (This does not hurt your baby.) Then we put earphones on your baby. These play a soft clicking sound that stimulates your baby's hearing nerves. The electrodes measure your baby's response to these soft clicks. |
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Otoacoustic automatic emissions system (OAE) We place a small, soft earphone in each of your baby's ears, one at a time. Quiet sounds are played, and we measure the ear's responses. |
Neither test will make your baby uncomfortable. In fact, screening is done while the baby sleeps. Before you leave the hospital, we will talk with you about the results of your baby's test.
What if the test shows a hearing problem?
Sometimes the screening suggests a baby has a hearing problem. (Many newborns have debris in their ear canals. This can affect the test results.) If this happens, the baby will need to be screened again in a few weeks. If you need to schedule a re-screening after you go home, your nurse or doctor will talk with you about it before you leave the hospital. If the second screening shows a hearing loss, staff will talk with you about tests that can tell you more about your baby's hearing. It is important to have these tests, so that you know how well your baby can hear. |
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If your baby has a hearing disorder, it is very important to arrange for services right away. With the right care, your child can develop good language and communication skills. Without this help, your child's development may suffer.
How can you care for your child’s hearing?
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Many babies who do not pass the newborn hearing tests turn out to have normal hearing after all. On the other hand, some newborns who pass the hearing screening will develop hearing problems later. For this reason, you should observe your child's ability to listen and to communicate. |
The "Hearing Checklist"
below suggests some behaviors that will tell you your baby can hear you.
If you have any concerns about your child’s hearing, talk with your
doctor.
Hearing Checklist
Behaviors that show your baby can hear you.
When your child is: |
Behaviors to watch for: |
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Younger than 3 months old |
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Baby startles to sudden loud sounds. Baby is soothed by the sound of your voice. |
Younger than 6 months old |
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Baby looks toward a familiar voice. Baby plays at making noises and sounds. |
6 to 10 months old |
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Baby turns head in response to new sounds. Baby begins to understand common words like "no" and "bye-bye." Baby responds when you say his or her name. |
10-15 months old |
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Baby repeats simple words and sounds that you make. Baby points to or reaches for familiar objects when asked. |
15-18 months old |
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Baby follows simple spoken directions. Baby regularly uses seven or more true words. |
24 months old |
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Baby understands you when you call from another room. When you name a part of the body – ears, nose, toes – baby points to it. Baby begins to speak in two-word combinations: "Mommy, more!" or "Go outside?" |
If
you have any concerns about your child’s hearing, |
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To learn more, please visit the
Iowa
Early Hearing Detection and Intervention System (IAEHDI). 
Funded by Early ACCESS (IDEA, Part C) federal grant funds in
Iowa.
For more information, please contact: Tammy O'Holleran |
This information was produced by staff at the Center for Disabilities and Development, nationally designated Iowa's Center for Excellence on Disabilities. The center is a component of University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, University of Iowa Health Care. Funding was provided through a grant form the Iowa Department of Publish Health, through the Early ACCESS program (IDEA, Part C). |
