Epidemiological study of hearing impairments in children: prevalence, structure, amplification, and social factors

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For the first time, a detailed epidemiological study of hearing impairments (HI) in the children’s population of St. Petersburg (n=3098) was conducted. The data on the incidence of HI in children, the distribution of children depending on the degree of hearing loss, HI type, the presence of additional disorders, risk factors for hearing loss were obtained. Only 19% of children with HI were diagnosed in accordance with modern requirements of early care — at the age of 3 months. In children who underwent universal newborn hearing screening the average age of diagnosis was significantly lower than in children who were not screened. Only 54% of HI children use hearing aids (HA) or cochlear implants. Among the children who do not use HA, the main number is children with mild and moderate hearing loss, unilateral hearing loss and otitis media with effusion. A significant part of them should be considered as candidates for amplification according to current recommendations. The average interval between diagnosis and amplification was 15.7 months. Only 5% of children from the entire population of children with HI received early intervention in accordance with the modern time standard: 1 month (detection) — 3 months (diagnosis) — 6 months (amplification). The problems of organizing an effective care for HI children and the directions of its development are discussed: improving newborn hearing screening; introduction the system of informing the citizens and doctors of related specialties (pediatricians, neurologists) in the field of prevention, diagnosis and rehabilitation of HI in children; expansion of genetic testing of children; reducing time of waiting and improving the quality of HA provided to handicapped children.

Keywords:

hearing disorders in children

universal newborn hearing screening

diagnosis of hearing loss in children

epidemiology of hearing loss

amplification

Authors:

Tufatulin G.Sh.

City Center of Pediatric Audiology;
Mechnikov North-Western State Medical University

ORCID: 0000-0002-6809-7764

Koroleva I.V.

Center of Pediatric Audiology;
St. Petersburg Research Institute of Ear, Throat, Nose and Speech

ORCID: 0000-0001-8909-4602

Mefodovskaya E.K.

Center of Pediatric Audiology

Received:

31.05.2020

Accepted:

14.07.2020

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