title: A four-year follow-up of hearing and development in children exposed in utero to vibro-acoustic stimulation.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To obtain information of hearing and neuro-development in children exposed to vibro-acoustic stimulation in utero.
  
  
  METHODS
  Information collected from Swedish child care programmes.
  
  
  METHODS
  Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Karolinska Institutet, Danderyd University Hospital, Sweden.
  
  
  METHODS
  Children of 460 mothers exposed to vibro-acoustic stimulation for the assessment of fetal well-being during high- and low-risk pregnancies during 1985-1987.
  
  
  METHODS
  Auditory test (20-25 dB at eight frequencies between 500 and 8000 Hz) and general neurological examination at four years of age.
  
  
  RESULTS
  No hearing damage or neuro-developmental abnormalities that could be connected to the vibro-acoustic stimulation were found.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Vibro-acoustic stimulation, as applied in clinical practice, did not endanger either neurological development or hearing in children exposed in utero.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Karolinska Institutet, Danderyd Hospital, Sweden.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nyman
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Barr
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Westgren
mesh_terms: D000161:Acoustic Stimulation / Q000009:adverse effects*; D002648:Child; D002657:Child Development; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006309:Hearing; D006320:Hearing Tests; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D011247:Pregnancy; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects; D014732:Vibration