Loss of hearing ability is gradually climbing the list of most impactful global diseases. The World Health Organization (WHO) projects that by the year 2050 nearly 2.5 billion people will have some degree of hearing loss. Out of these, at least 700 million people will require hearing rehabilitation and therapy sessions.

Currently, the WHO puts the number of young people who are at risk of permanent but avoidable hearing loss at over one billion. Ironically, hearing loss can be nipped in the bud if it is spotted early enough. One of the most effective ways of controlling and managing hearing loss is by spotting it when it occurs during childhood. This is also the period when hearing loss is most impactful to a child.

“Children develop language in the early years of life. The impact of hearing loss on the development of spoken language is greatest in those who are born with hearing loss or develop it soon after birth,” the WHO states in its guidelines report on childhood hearing loss titled ‘Childhood Hearing Loss: Strategies for prevention and care’.

Types of hearing loss

According to the Centre for Disease Control, there are various types and degrees of hearing loss. These will range from mild to severe. The CDC cites them as including:

• Conductive: This is hearing loss that is caused by something that stops sounds from getting through the outer or middle ear. This type of hearing loss can be treated with medicine or surgery.

• Sensorineural: This is hearing loss that occurs when there is a problem in the way the inner ear or hearing nerve works.

• Mixed: This is hearing loss that includes both a conductive and a sensorineural hearing loss.

• Auditory Neuropathy Spectrum Disorder: This is hearing loss that occurs when sound enters the ear normally, but because of damage to the inner ear or the hearing nerve, sound isn’t organized in a way that the brain can understand.

In addition, the CDC states that hearing loss will usually take very different forms and routes. For instance, it can be unilateral (one ear) or bilateral (both ears). “It could also have happened before a person learned to talk (which is known as pre-lingual) or after a person learned to talk (which is known as post-lingual). It could also be the same type of hearing loss in both ears and different sets of hearing loss in each ear,” the CDC states.

Symptoms of hearing loss in children

A child who has hearing loss will show certain symptoms that you should be on the lookout for. According to the CDC, these symptoms will mostly include failure by the child to get startled at loud noises, failing to turn to the source of a sound after 6 months of age, not saying single words, such as ‘dada’ or ‘mama’ by the age of 12 months, consistently not turning head only when they sees you but not if you call out their name.

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In older children between toddler and pre-school age bracket, the child may have delayed or inaudible speech. They might also have the habit of turning volume of listening devices such as the television to extreme highs so that they can hear.

Causes of hearing loss in children

There are various factors that bring about hearing loss in children. One of these is genetics factors. According to the WHO, up to genetics factor are responsible for nearly 40 per cent of childhood hearing loss. “Hearing loss is much more frequent in children born of a consanguineous marriage,” the WHO says. This is a marriage formed between two blood-related individuals who are second cousins or closer.

It is estimated that children born out of consanguineous marriages are twice as likely to have genetic disorders. Infections contribute to 31 per cent of causes of childhood hearing loss while 17 per cent of the causes are made up of complications related to birth.

In addition, 4 per cent is due to ototoxic medications while the remaining 8 per cent is due to unknown causes. “Ototoxic medications include medicines such as those used in the treatment of neonatal infections, malaria, drug-resistant tuberculosis and cancers,” cites the WHO.

Infections may include rubella or cytomegalovirus, meningitis, mumps and measles. “Ear infections that often manifest as discharging or running ears, can lead to hearing loss, or even life-threatening problems, such as meningitis and brain abscesses,” the WHO cites.

The global health body further estimates that things such as premature birth, low birth-weight, lack of oxygen at the time of birth, neonatal jaundice, congenital malformations of the ear and the auditory nerve are also red flags that a child may suffer from hearing loss.

Prevention and treatment

According to the World Health Organization up to 60 percent of hearing loss in children can be prevented through measures such as immunization for rubella and meningitis, improved maternal and neonatal care as well as early screening and management of inflammatory diseases of the middle ear. The WHO recommends for early detection which ought to be followed by timely and appropriate interventions.

“This will help to minimize developmental delays and promote communication, education and social development in the child,” cites WHO. Hearing loss that has been caused by inflammation or infection in the middle ear can be treated and reversed through medications or through surgery.

However, other forms of irreversible hearing loss may need different types of care and management to improve quality of the child’s life. “This care and management may include the use of hearing devices, such as hearing aids, and cochlear or middle ear implants, hearing assistive technology, such as FM/radio systems and loop systems, language therapy, cued speech and auditory-oral therapy, and the sign language,” the WHO says.

Cost of treatment

Treatment for hearing loss is out of reach for many families. For example it is estimated that hearing aids can cost up to Sh. 50,000. Cochlea implant surgical procedures can go for an estimated Sh. 2,500,000 to Sh. 3,000,000. If therapy is involved, the patient will need to pay at least Sh. 3,500 per session.

These therapy sessions can be as many as three per week and can stretch for as long as two years depending on the age of the child prior to the start of the sessions. This implies that for one week, you could spend as much as Sh. 10,500 on therapy sessions alone.