Hearing Loss Risk Factors:
Malformation of the ear, nose, and
throat
- Rubella during pregnancy
- Rh incompatibility
- Family history of hearing loss
- Apgar score from 0-3
- Severe neonatal infections
- Meningitis
- Low birth weight (under 3.3 lbs.)
- Hyperbilirubinemia
- Ototoxic medications
- Severe respiratory distress and/or
prolonged mechanical ventilation - Neurodegenerative disorders
- Childhood infectious diseases such
as mumps and measles - Seizures
- Neurosurgical interventions
Hearing Loss Behavioral Indicators:
The child does not stop moving, does not
quiet in response to speech,
- The child does not arouse from light sleep to
sudden loud noises. - At about 4-7 months, the child does not turn
to sounds and voices or give an indication of
detecting a sound source by eyes widening or
blinking, fussing or quieting, increasing or
decreasing overall activity level, changes in
breathing or sucking patterns. - There is a lack of babbling, cooing, grunting,
or the child stops these behaviors and does not
progress to speech. - The child does not respond to familiar sounds
(such as mom’s and dad’s voices) when (s)he
cannot see the source. - The child does not use speech at an age when
most children are beginning to use speech
(approximately 9-12 months).