Re:How do we know if our baby has a hearing problem?
Fortunately, babies are now routinely screened for hearing at birth using a technique called a BAER screen or a brain auditory evoked response technique. It is also called a Auditory brain stem response test.
Another test used is the otoacustic emissions test. The otoacustic emissions tests can show whether parts of the ear respond properly to sound. During this test, a sponge earphone is placed into the ear canal. The ear is stimulated with sound, and the "echo" is measured. The echo is found in everyone who hears normally.
If there is no echo, it could indicate a hearing loss. The auditory brain stem response tests check how the brain stem (the part of the nerve that carries sound from the ear to the brain) and the brain respond to sound.
During this test, your child wears earphones, and electrodes are placed on the head and ears. A mild sedative may be given to help keep your child calm and quiet during the test. The nurse or doctor sends sounds through the earphones and measures the electrical activity in your child's brain when he or she should be hearing.
This way the baby doesn’t have to indicate whether or not it heard the sound. The brain does it for them. Babies learn a great deal from hearing so it is a good idea to have your baby screened by the age of one month.
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