Risk Indicators for Pediatric Hearing Loss: What we Found in 10 years of Universal Hearing Screening Program

Abstract

It is estimated that 50% of children with hearing loss have risk indicators that must be identified at birth. Newborn hearing screening programs usually recommend that those children should be followed until, at least, 2 years of age or until language is fully developed, even if they pass screening stages, because some of the risk factors can produce delayed hearing loss.¹
The aim of this study is to characterize the population of newborns identified with, at least, one risk indicator for hearing loss between July 2008 and July 2018 in hospital Lusíadas Lisboa and also to evaluate the efficacy of the tracking system of high risk babies at our institution.