(Hearing Loss and Treatment by Carolyn Coss, Audiologist and Speech Pathologist at Keystone Audiology and Speech, first appeared in the June 14 Public Opinion Newspaper. Click here to read it on www.publicopiniononline.com)
If your child is having trouble in school, seems to say “what?” a lot or has slow or delayed speech development, it may be a warning sign for something serious—hearing loss. Hearing loss in children can often be diagnosed easily and addressed quickly so that kids aren’t left behind when it comes to learning. Just paying attention to your child, having them tested regularly, and looking for hearing loss cues can help prevent your child from lagging behind due to a hearing problem.
Cause for Concern
The primary cause of hearing loss in children is fluid or infections in the middle ear. These conditions occur more frequently in younger children due to their smaller size and proportions of the face and throat.
Some risk factors such as family history, cleft lip or cleft palate, and Down syndrome are not within a parent’s control. However, in some cases it is possible to reduce risk. Children exposed to tobacco smoke are at much higher risk of ear infections. Another way to reduce risk includes frequent hand washing. Since ear infections often go hand in hand with other respiratory illnesses such as cold or flu, prevention with proper hand washing may be helpful. Studies have also shown that babies who are breastfed have lower rates of ear infections. Food sensitivities and allergies may also be associated with increased risk of infection. Parents of children with frequent or repeated ear infections should discuss these risk factors with their health care provider.
Signs and symptoms
In young children, signs of a hearing concern can include slow or delayed language development, speech that is difficult to understand, not following directions as expected, not responding to soft sounds or voices, pulling at the ears, fluid draining from the ears, fever, and discomfort when lying down. Older children and teens may complain of pain in the ears, frequently ask “what?” or begin to have problems in school.
Seek Help
If you suspect your child has a hearing problem, it’s important to seek help right away. Discuss your concerns with your child’s health care provider. The degree of hearing loss can vary with the child. Sometimes the fluid is thin and clear. For others it may be thick or sticky. Some children may have borderline to mild hearing loss but for others it may be more significant. Your child’s health care provider can determine the appropriate treatment for ear infection which may include oral antibiotics, nasal sprays or ear drops. Sometimes insertion of ear tubes is needed. For some children, removal of impacted ear wax will improve hearing.
If a medical condition exists, you will want to begin treatment as soon as possible. If permanent hearing loss is present, speech and language development can be affected. The sooner hearing loss is identified, the sooner a hearing aid or cochlear implant, if needed, can be fit so speech and language development can be supported through speech therapy.
Carolyn Coss is an audiologist and speech language pathologist at Keystone Audiology and Speech at 820 Fifth Avenue in Chambersburg. Visit www.keystoneaudiology.org for more information.
