Prevalence of hearing disorders in newborns hospital

Hearing loss is more prevalent than other disorders found at birth. Aim: To estimate the prevalence of hearing disorders in newborns at a teaching hospital. This was a prospective cross-sectional study of 226 newborns born in a public hospital between May 2008 and May 2009. Of the 226 screened, 46 (20.4%) had no emissions and were referred for a second emission. Of the 26 (56.5%) children who attended the retest, 8 (30.8%) remained absent and were referred to an otorhinolaryngologist. Five (55.5%) attended and were examined by the doctor. Of these, 3 (75.0%) had normal otoscopy and were referred for Brainstem Auditory Evoked Potential (BAEP) assessment. Of all the children studied, 198 (87.6%) had emissions in one of the tests and 2 (0.9%) were diagnosed with deafness. Conclusion: The prevalence of hearing disorders in the population studied was 0.9%.