Abstract:

Objective To investigate newborn hearing disorders and clinical feature by analyzing data of newborn hearing screening. Methods The screening had three phases and included 6?159 newborns from May 2006 to Jan. 2009 in ourhospital. In phaseⅠ, the staff of the delivery suit screened newborn by Distortion Product Otoacoustic Emissions (DPOAE) between the third day and the seventh day after birth, or before the time of discharge. In phase Ⅱ, those who failed in phaseⅠ had a hearing test by DPOAE after forty-two days. Newborns who failed the second test were referred to a specified hospital for phase Ⅲ.  Audiometrists tested their hearing by Diagnostic Otoacoustic Emission, Auditory Brainstem Response and 40Hz Auditory Event Related Potential. Results 5594 newborns  were tested in phaseⅠand 4?641 passed, with a passrate of 82.96％. 953 newborns needed a further test, but only 507 newborns were tested in phase Ⅱ, and 447passed , with a passrate of 88.17％. Thirteen newborns (6 males and 7 females) were diagnosed as having hearing disorders in phase Ⅲ. The prevalence of newborn hearing disorders was 2.53‰ in all newborns, 2.41‰ in males and 2.63‰ in females. The prevalence rate of males showed no significant difference compared with that of females (P>0.05). The prevalence of hearing disorders of newbornswhoexperienced treatments after birth in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) was12.35‰ (five cases), and that of those without the experience was 1.69‰ (eight cases), the former's prevalence increased significantly compared with that of the latter (P<0.05). Conclusion The prevalence of newborn hearing disorders between males and females has no significant difference. Newborns who have experience in NICU demonstrate a higher prevalence than those without the experience. Themethod of two phases hearing screening by DPOAE can increase the pass-rate of the hearing test.

Key words: Newborn; Hearing screening; Hearing disorders; Riskfactors    passratepassrate