THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In an attempt to eradicate deafness in the country, Newborn Hearing Screening and Remediation Programme which had shown positive results in Kerala, will be promoted in all states by the Indian Paediatric Association (IPA). The programme launched at Kochi and then to Kottayam and Thrissur districts will be replicated through a centralised system in each district throughout the country. A team of four persons will visit every hospital on a regular basis and ensure that each child will be screened before being discharged from hospital.Dr T U Sukumaran, national president, IPA, said that this programme had already been started in major cities like Mumbai, Chandigarh and Pune. An awareness will be created among the paediatricians in the country about the need of screening all infants.‘’It is expected that complete eradication of deafness could be achieved in the country through this programme in five years. Bilateral hearing loss is present in 1 to 3 per 1000 newborn infants in the well-baby nursery population and in 2 to 4 per 100 infants in the intensive care unit population,’’ he said. According to Dr Sukumaran, there are remedial measures for deafness if it is detected at an early stage. The remedy will be completed in a year’s time.Dr Abraham K Paul, MD, paediatrician, Cochin Hospital, and convener, New Born Hearing Screening Programme, whostarted the programme in Kochi, said that so far 34,000 newborn babies have been screened in Kerala and hearing loss was detected in 48 babies in the newborn period itself. Screening is done with a small portable equipment ‘Otoport’.‘’All newborns should be screened before being discharged from hospitals, but at least all high-risk newborns must definitely be screened, because the incidence of hearing loss is 10 times higher than in the general population. If detection and remedial measures are done after one year, language development will be adversely affected and if detection is after 2-3 years, child will become a deaf mute,’’ he said. Identification is only one step. Proper follow-up, remediation with hearing aidand in selected cases cochlear implants, and programmes to develop communication skills should follow at the earliest. The specific goals of earlyintervention are to facilitate develop mentally appropriate language skills, enhance the family’s understanding of infant’s strengths and needs, and promote the family’s ability to advocate for its infant, he said. If there is abnormal result, the test is conducted after two weeks and Bera test is conducted for confirmation and quantification of hearing loss. If hearing loss is confirmed, usage of hearing aid is recommended at the earliest along with intensive communication and speech therapy. Hearing aids can be fitted even as early as two months of age, he added.
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