The New York Womans

Early signs that predict that your child has a hearing problem

Hearing loss has long been associated with aging and dementia, yet children can experience it at an early age and it can be difficult to diagnose early.

Therefore, it is important to pay attention as soon as you notice any change in your child's response when called and addressed. For example, if he constantly asks to be repeated, asks "What?", or makes gestures or movements that indicate he did not hear or understand, all of these are worrying signs.

It is also important to pay attention to whether the child speaks and discusses with others, especially with his peers, in an age-appropriate manner, as all of these signs may indicate a hearing loss problem.

Below are some of the most common causes and symptoms of this problem, as well as the best way to protect your child's hearing.

What causes temporary hearing loss in children?

There are two types of hearing problems in children: temporary hearing loss and permanent hearing loss. Temporary hearing loss usually resolves within a few months. Causes include:

Blockage: When some children are unable to communicate and hear normally, it is necessary to visit an audiologist's office to have their ears tested for ear health and safety. The cause is often simply excess earwax.
Infection: Colds or viral infections sometimes cause temporary hearing loss due to fluid buildup in the middle ear. Congestion and fluid buildup in the ear caused by the infection limit the movement of the eardrum. However, once the child recovers from the illness, hearing usually returns to normal without problems.
Accidents: If a child hits his head, he may experience temporary hearing loss due to blood flow to the middle ear. However, if the injury fractures the temporal bone, where the inner ear is located, it can lead to permanent hearing loss. Unfortunately, surgery may not be able to repair this type of hearing loss.

Causes of permanent hearing loss in children

Permanent hearing loss is a serious problem affecting children for several reasons, most notably genetic factors. It can be caused by certain inherited genetic syndromes and disorders.

Premature birth, congenital ear deformities, or narrow or blocked ear canals can also cause this problem, and in most cases it is difficult to treat.

In addition, noise above 85 decibels can damage cells and tiny blood vessels in the ear. Short-term exposure to intense noise may cause temporary hearing loss, while long-term exposure can lead to permanent damage.

If a child sustains a severe head injury as a result of an accident, it can cause nerve damage and permanent hearing loss that doctors cannot reverse. The child may need to use a hearing aid.

Finally, if a child is exposed to some serious diseases at an early age, such as encephalitis and meningitis, this may lead to hearing loss.

Symptoms to look out for early

There are several indicators that parents can observe that their baby is able to hear normally. For example, newborns up to 8 weeks of age may startle or widen their eyes when a sudden noise occurs nearby, and they may also wake up or startle due to the noise.

From 8 weeks to 4 months, a baby can look in the direction of a sound and may calm down while listening to his mother speak to him. From 6 to 12 months, the baby turns toward familiar sounds and begins to respond to them.

Between 18 months and 2 years of age, he begins to imitate simple words and sounds, begins to have a small vocabulary of single words, and can understand simple directions such as waving.

In relatively advanced stages of early childhood, between two and a half years and three and a half years, he has clear speech with a good vocabulary, which is evidence of his ability to hear those around him and acquire skills naturally.

On the other hand, if the aforementioned stages do not proceed as expected, this may indicate that the child is suffering from hearing problems and should be consulted with specialists to determine the underlying causes.

In relatively advanced childhood stages, there are some symptoms that indicate that the child is not hearing well and is suffering from a problem, including the following:

Not responding when addressed.
His academic level declined.
Complaint of tinnitus.
speak out loud
Watching TV loudly.
Pronouncing words incorrectly.
Imbalance and constant ear rubbing.

Prevention is better than cure

It is generally important to keep your child's ears clean and to be careful not to use earwax removal cotton or tweezers as they can cause injury and infection.

Parents should also remain vigilant in assessing their child's hearing, especially if they appear to have learning delays related to speech and language development. They should also be careful to protect the child from distractions such as cell phones and other electronic devices and to engage in direct communication with them to enhance their skills.

If your child suffers from any hearing problems and notices one or more of the aforementioned symptoms, you should consult a specialist to provide the necessary medical advice.

If treatment is available, or if steps can be taken to limit the damage, it is always better to find out sooner rather than later.