[An etiological study in a school for the deaf and radiological findings].
OBJECTIVE
The causes of sensorineural hearing loss were assessed in a population of students in a school for the deaf.


METHODS
Ninety-one students (34 girls, 57 boys; mean age 10.6 years; range 7 to 20 years) from a school for the deaf were evaluated together with their family tree. Otolaryngologic, ophthalmologic, and systemic physical examinations and audiologic and radiologic investigations were performed.


RESULTS
Sensorineural hearing loss was of genetic origin in 32.9% of the students. No etiologic factor could be determined in 31.9% of the cases. Infectious diseases (38.3%) and consanguinity (26.3%) were found as the most common etiologic factors in nongenetic and genetic sensorineural hearing losses, respectively.


CONCLUSIONS
Sensorineural hearing losses due to infectious diseases and consanguineous marriages are preventable conditions. The incidence of sensorineural hearing loss will decline if these two conditions are controlled.
Külahli
Ismail
I
Department of Otolaryngology, Medicine Faculty of Erciyes University, Kayseri, Turkey. coskuna@erciyes.edu.tr
Coşkun
Abdulhakim
A
Ketenci
Ibrahim
I
Sentürk
Mehmet
M
Canöz
Kürşat
K
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D003241:Consanguinity; D005260:Female; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D006319:Hearing Loss, Sensorineural / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology* / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D014421:Turkey / Q000453:epidemiology