Symptoms

Hearing aids work by increasing the volume of sounds. Many people who are considered deaf still have some degree of hearing. If this is the case, specially-designed hearing aids may be able to improve your hearing. Hearing aids can increase your awareness of speech and other sounds around you.

Cochlear implants allow deaf people to receive and process sounds and speech. However, these devices do not restore normal hearing. Anyone who can hear well enough with hearing aids is not a good candidate for cochlear implants.

• Muffling of speech and other sounds.
• Difficulty understanding words, especially against background noise or in a crowd.
• Trouble hearing consonants.
• Frequently asking others to speak more slowly, clearly and loudly.
• Needing to turn up the volume of the television or radio.
• Withdrawal from conversations.

The Deaf are considered deaf once they have passed a certain decibel (dB) hearing loss. Many people who are profoundly deaf can still hear planes, dogs barking, etc. Hearing a sound does not mean that Deaf people can understand speech.

Infections such as rubella, cytomegalovirus (CMV), toxoplasmosis and herpes can cause a child to be born deaf. There are also a range of medicines, known as ototoxic drugs, which can damage a baby’s hearing system before birth.

Even deaf babies can coo and make gurgling sounds. If you’re not sure whether your baby has been tested, contact your hospital to check her records.

In particular, one healthy infant who was diagnosed with profound SNHL at 6 months of age showed a hearing improvement to 70 dBnHL and then 50 dBnHL on a series of follow-up hearing tests (Fig.

Deafness can be an inherited condition that is present when a baby is born. Inherited deafness can also develop over time during childhood or adulthood. According to the American Hearing Research Foundation, about 1 out of every 1,000 to 2,000 births involves congenital deafness.

Signs of hearing loss in your baby can include:

• Not being startled by loud sounds.
• Not turning toward a sound after he’s 6 months old.
• Not saying single words like “mama” or “dada” by the time he’s 1 year old.
• Turns his head if he sees you, but not if you only call out his name.
• Seems to hear some sounds but not others.

It should be noted that a hearing child born to one Deaf parent and one hearing parent is still referred to as a CODA. Quigley and Paul (1990) estimate that approximately 5% of CODAs are born to two Deaf parents and 10% of CODAs are born to one Deaf parent and one hearing parent.

Lower scores can often be associated or result in a loss of hearing. Sometimes, there are different types of treatments that can be done in order to aid in babies’ hearing. Things like hearing aids, cochlear implants, bone-anchored hearing aids and other assistive devices can help tremendously.

Face your child when you speak, and make eye contact. If necessary, tap her lightly on the shoulder or wave your hand to get her attention before you talk. Be expressive when communicating with your baby — use hand gestures and facial expressions, and show your feelings by cuddling, touching, and smiling.