Hearing thresholds in newborns with a cleft palate assessed by auditory brain stem response.
OBJECTIVE
To objectively estimate the extent of hearing loss in infants with cleft palate and to measure the incidence of hearing loss.


METHODS
Retrospective consecutive case note review.


METHODS
Tertiary institutional regional referral center for cleft lip and palate.


METHODS
Consecutive cases of 90 infants with cleft palate who underwent auditory brain stem response (ABR) threshold estimation.


METHODS
ABR threshold estimation during natural sleep in infants with cleft palate under 2 months of age.


METHODS
Hearing level thresholds as estimated by auditory brain stem response and categorized as normal (< 25 < or = 35 dB nHL) , mild (> 35 < or = 45 dB nHL), moderate (> 45 < or = 65 dB nHL), severe (> 65 < or = 90 dB nHL), and profound (> 90 dB nHL) hearing loss.


RESULTS
Hearing loss was present in 82% of the infants tested. Most of the hearing loss was conductive (89%), mild (86%), and bilateral (84%). Average age of ABR threshold estimation was 48.5 days. In 22% of infants there was an associated syndrome. The mean air conduction thresholds for the right and left ear were 40 and 39.7, respectively.


CONCLUSIONS
The incidence of hearing loss in a cohort of cleft palate infants has been objectively estimated by auditory brain stem response thresholds and was found to be very high (82%).
Viswanathan
Narayanan
N
Breoomfield Hospital, St. Andrews Centre for Burns and Plastic Surgery, Chelmsford, UK. viswanara@aol.com
Vidler
Michael
M
Richard
Bruce
B
D001309:Auditory Threshold / Q000502:physiology*; D001844:Bone Conduction / Q000502:physiology; D002972:Cleft Palate / Q000145:classification / Q000503:physiopathology*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003638:Deafness / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology; D016057:Evoked Potentials, Auditory, Brain Stem / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006309:Hearing / Q000502:physiology*; D034381:Hearing Loss / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology; D006312:Hearing Loss, Bilateral / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology; D006314:Hearing Loss, Conductive / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012890:Sleep / Q000502:physiology