The article will figure out how to test hearing in children.
With the appearance of the child in the family, more time should be devoted to his health, including the state of the hearing organs. A variety of infections can provoke serious consequences. The most common complications are considered to be speech impairment, inability to socialize in the surrounding world, hearing loss.
The sooner the parents will notice ear problems, the sooner they will be able to identify and eliminate the causes of inflammation and prevent possible complications. To detect impairment, it is important to periodically conduct a hearing test in children from birth.
What is the risk of hearing impairment?
It is reliably known that even minor hearing impairments can lead to serious deviations in the development of the child. Violations in the structure of the hearing organ may be temporary. In such situations, there is no reason for parents to worry.
But neglected conditions require help, including surgical interventions. It is important to understand that the consequences of such violations can become irreversible, up to complete hearing loss.
Hearing tests in newborns are carried out in maternity hospitals.
In more mature age
Situations where violations appear in more adulthood are not excluded. A two or three year old child already knows how to talk, but hearing impairment can cause speech loss. In such situations, it is necessary to seek specialized help from teachers and doctors to maintain the ability to communicate.
That is why it is necessary to carefully monitor the child’s development process, control his hearing and, if any deviations are detected, seek the help of specialists. Hearing tests are fairly simple.
Hearing in a child can be reduced due to hereditary pathological conditions and as a result of certain diseases, including colds, flu, otitis media, scarlet fever, measles, and mumps. Also, a decrease in hearing acuity due to prolonged use of antibiotic drugs is not excluded.
How to test hearing in children? Initial verification can be done at home. But a full examination by a doctor should still be organized in the first months after the birth of a child. As a rule, the otolaryngologist conducts her in the clinic.
The structure of the human ear : a diagram
The ear is a paired organ responsible for the perception of sounds, balance control and spatial orientation. It is localized in the temporal region of the cranium, there is a conclusion - the external auricles.
The ear is arranged as follows:
- The outer ear is this part of the auditory system, this includes the auricle and the external auditory canal.
- The middle ear consists of four parts - the eardrum and the auditory ossicles (malleus, anvil, stirrup).
- Inner ear. Its main component is the labyrinth, which is a complex structure in form and function.
With the interaction of all departments, the transmission of sound waves is transformed into a neural impulse and enters the human brain.
The structure of the human ear is presented below.
Causes of hearing loss
All hearing impairment in babies can be divided into three varieties:
- Sensorineural form.
- Conductive.
- Mixed (conductive-neurosensory).
All of them can be both pathological in nature and be acquired. They can be localized simultaneously in both ears, but, as a rule, they affect only one ear.
Conductive disorders develop due to trauma to the ear or disease. In addition, conductive hearing loss can occur as a result of abnormalities in the development of the middle, outer ear.
Conductive disorders also include otitis media of any kind, inflammatory processes in the pharynx, nose, the appearance of sulfur plugs, and foreign objects getting into the ear. As a rule, violations of this form can be easily treated.
To sensorineural disorders, it is customary to include disorders in the structure of the middle, inner ear. A similar problem arises due to trauma to the middle ear, prematurity of the baby, and other prenatal diseases. In this regard, sensorineural disorders often occur due to a predisposition of a hereditary nature.
You should pay attention to the health of the child if during pregnancy the mother had the following diseases:
- Mumps.
- Meningitis.
- Inflammation of the viral nature, for example, rubella, colds, flu.
Such violations can provoke long-term courses of antibiotic therapy.
Unfortunately, the treatment of this type of hearing loss (ICD 10 - H90.3) takes a long time, the rehabilitation period is delayed. Moreover, in the maximum number of cases, therapy is ineffective. Restoring hearing in this condition is almost impossible.
Mixed disorders develop as a result of exposure to several factors simultaneously. The treatment of such disorders involves the use of special medications and the wearing of specialized sound amplifiers.
Hearing verification methods are discussed below.
Background to hearing impairment
You should pay attention to the health of the hearing organs if a child under the age of one year is not afraid and does not flinch from loud sounds. The following facts are also signs of violation:
- The child does not respond to other people's speech.
- The child does not turn on the voice of the parents.
- The child does not respond to loud sounds during sleep.
- Does not turn his head to the sound coming from behind.
- Does not pay attention to toys that make sounds.
- By the age of one year, he does not understand the meaning of some simple words.
- The child does not start to make new sounds.
Signs of hearing impairment in children 1-3 years old are slightly different:
- A 1-2 year old child does not have coherent speech.
- There is a noticeable violation in the process of forming sound revolutions.
- The child does not perceive speech, often asks again.
- The child does not understand the speech of a person in another room.
- The child pays more attention not to speech, but to facial expressions.
Check at home
So, how to check a child’s hearing at home? A few simple techniques can determine its condition. To do this, you need loud toys making sounds: harmonica, pipes, rattles. It is necessary to get up from a child at a distance of 6 meters and make sounds with toys. The kid in the first seconds should freeze, and then turn his eyes or head to the side where the sound comes from.
You can fix the effect as follows: make sounds alternately in the child's field of vision and behind his back.
There is another test for hearing, which is called "pea test." To carry it out, you need three empty opaque bottles. In the first and second should be covered with cereals (buckwheat, peas), the third - leave empty.
After this, the parent should sit a short distance in front of the baby and take one filled and empty container. Then you should start shaking with jars at a thirty-centimeter distance from the child. After a minute, the jars must be interchanged. At the same time, the second parent carefully monitors the reactions of the child - he must turn his head to the side where the sound comes from. The baby’s reaction allows you to easily determine whether he hears a sound or not.
This method for testing hearing can only be used in children older than 4 months.
Testing hearing in a child from 3 years
How to test hearing in children, every parent should know. In children of three years of age, hearing can be checked using ordinary speech. You should get up from the child at a six-meter distance. In this case, the child should not look at the inspector, therefore it is better to put it sideways, covering the second ear with your hand or turunda.
To begin to speak words follows in a whisper. If the child does not understand the pronounced, the inspector begins to come closer. In order to test the ability to hear high-contrast sounds, you must move away from the child at a distance of 15 meters. Words must be spoken clearly and loudly, and the child must, at the same time, repeat them.
The words said by the examiner should be clear to the child.
It is important to understand that the degree of hearing loss is higher, the smaller the distance at which the child cannot make out and repeat the words. If such a deviation is found, it is necessary to consult a doctor.
How to check the hearing in children on the device?
Check on the device
If the slightest inflammation in the ear or soreness is detected, the child should be taken for examination to a pediatrician, who will determine the need for consultation with an otolaryngologist or an audiologist.
You can check your child’s hearing on the device in several ways. If acute or partial hearing loss is noted , the following methods should be used.
- The smallest patients are examined in the external auditory canal and physiological methods are used.
- Inspection based on reflex manifestations. It involves the analysis of unconditioned reflexes that occur in response to sounds: the reaction of facial expressions, eyes, trembling, muscle contraction.
- Inspection for reflexes arising in response to actions.
- Analysis of auditory ossicles recording sound waves.
- Methods based on bodily sensations.
- Oral examination.
Audiometry
However, the most common way to analyze hearing acuity is through audiometry. It allows you to get graphical results of the study, clearly indicating the type of pathology and the degree of its development. Perform audiometry using specialized equipment - an audiometer.
The procedure consists in the fact that the child, hearing sounds of different frequencies and intensities, signals through a button about his perception.
Audiometry is of two types - electronic and speech. The difference between them is significant. Electronic audiometry captures the type of violation and its degree, speech audiometry, in turn, can only indicate the presence of any violation, not providing the opportunity to obtain information about the degree of neglect of the disease.
Conclusion
Thus, when the first symptoms of hearing impairment are detected in a small child, it is important to seek the help of a specialist as soon as possible, who will determine the cause of the violation and recommend effective therapy. The treatment of hearing loss (ICD 10 - H90.3) should be started in a timely manner, since hearing and speaking ability directly affect the child's degree of socialization and its further development. In no case should you leave hearing problems without any attention. After all, serious complications with hearing in a child can provoke even the flu transferred by a pregnant mother.