A Prospective Study to Screen for Hearing Impairment in All Newborns Born at Tertiary Care Center in Tumkur

Hearing impairment is one of the most prevalent congenital disorders observed in newborns. Identifying hearing impairment early and acting on that identification is essential to an infant's ability to develop normal speech, language and cognitive development. Universal Newborn Hearing Screening (UNHS) is a vital public health effort to reduce the burden of unrecognized hearing loss. To screen every newborn admitted to the tertiary care hospital in Tumkur for hearing impairment and to look for high-risk factors for hearing impairment in those newborns. A prospective observational study was carried out over a period of 24 months in a unit of 306 newborns. All newborns underwent hearing screening using a twostage Otoacoustic Emissions (OAE) protocol. Newborns who failed both stages underwent confirmatory Brainstem Evoked Response Audiometry (BERA). Demographic data and potential high-risk factors were recorded. All statistical analysis was done using Epi Info version 7.2.5. Out of 306 newborns, 6 (1.96%) were diagnosed with hearing impairment based on the BERAresults. Hyperbilirubinemia was the most frequently noted risk factor (36.93%), followed by birth asphyxia, meningitis, and prematurity. However, no statistically significant association was found with any of the high-risk factors present with hearing loss occurrence. This study illustrates the importance of universal newborn hearing screening in a clinical verification context, regardless of risk factors. Early identification of hearing loss using OAE and BERA tests allows for intervention as soon as possible, which is vital for the most favorable neurodevelopmental outcomes.