Kontakt 2009, 11(1):72-75 | DOI: 10.32725/kont.2009.010

Overall screening of audition in newborns at Department of Neonatology, Hospital České BudějoviceBiomedicine

Petra Hlavničková^1,*, Milan Hanzl², Jaroslava Tomášková²

¹ Jihočeská univerzita v Českých Budějovicích, Zdravotně sociální fakulta, katedra psychologie a speciální pedagogiky

² Nemocnice České Budějovice, a.s., Neonatologické oddělení

Screening of hearing defects in all the newborns is already being performed in most EU countries and in remaining countries its preparation is under way. The Czech Republic is also currently in this stage, where the nation-wide screening of the audition has not yet been ordered by law, e.g. in contrast to the Slovak Republic. All the perinatological centres provide screening of immature and risk newborns, but screening of the population of physiologic newborns is restricted to individual institutions only. This is rather due to personal problems of the examination (lack of personnel and considerable working load) than technical problems (instrumentation). At a level of particular regions, the overall screening is not provided in any region of the Czech Republic. The target of the screening was to establish diagnosis of severe hearing defects or further problems and to start timely the treatment or possibly to provide the child with suitable care necessary for the development of his/her communication.
At the Department of Neonatology, Hospital České Budějovice a. s., the audition screening is being implemented in all the newborns since November 1, 2006 till the present time. The sample group studied was evaluated over 2007 in children born at the department (except those born between May 15 and June 29, in which the audition screening was not implemented due to a technical failure of the instrument). The examination was based on transiently evoked otoacoustic emissions (TEOAE) in 2,235 children. In 193 newborns, the TEOAE were not detectable in the examination at the Department of Neonatology and they were sent for further examination at audiology unit of the ORL Department to MUDr. Štefflová (TEOAE, BERA). In 130 physiologic newborns (non-risk group), 100 newborns came for examination (77 %); in 63 risk newborns, 49 newborns came for the examination (78 %). Deafness was found in one child - audition threshold 105 - 110 dB - the lesion was corrected by a cochlear implantate. In five children, bilateral hypacusia was found. In nine children, unilateral absence of emissions was repeatedly observed. These children were submitted to subsequent care and the audition threshold will be accurately determined at three years of their age.

Keywords: screening of audition defects; transiently evoked otoacoutic emissions; subsequent care

Received: February 9, 2009; Accepted: April 10, 2009; Published: May 27, 2009  Show citation