In Can Be Difficult To Identify The Cause Of Childhood Hearing Loss

In many cases, hearing loss is not easily identified in children.  It can often take months or years to diagnose a hearing problem; it can be even more difficult to identify the cause.  Hearing loss in children is a traumatic, difficult situation to handle for both the child and their parents and caregivers.  There can be many different causes of childhood hearing loss, from congenital anomalies to outside influences after birth.  

Congenital causes of hearing loss are often related to problems with genetic malformations present prior to birth.  In some cases, either one or both of the parents also has congenital hearing loss, or carries the gene that causes hearing loss in a developing child.  Other causes of congenital hearing loss are not related to genetics, but are related to infection or injury during gestation.  Congenital hearing loss can only be diagnosed by a hearing professional and can range from mild hearing loss to profound deafness.

Outside influences after birth that can cause childhood hearing loss include trauma, excessive noise and viral infections.  A trauma, such as an eardrum perforation, can cause immediate or progressive hearing loss.  Often, children stick foreign objects in their ears and can easily perforate the eardrum.  Children are sometimes exposed to excessive noise without their parents recognizing there is a danger.  Excessive noise hearing loss can take years to fully develop into a problem severe enough to require hearing assistance.  Viral infections in the inner ear can afflict children frequently and can cause significant hearing loss.

Childhood hearing loss can have many causes, both subtle and obvious.  It can often take months or years for parents and caregivers to recognize hearing loss in a child.  As soon as hearing loss is suspected, parents should make the first available appointment to visit a hearing professional for a full assessment and audiogram.  Even young children, as young as a few months old, can benefit from the use of hearing aids.

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