This year’s World Hearing Day (3 March 2016) is raising awareness of the impact of childhood hearing loss worldwide. MED-EL, a leading provider of hearing implant systems, is supporting World Hearing Day with the launch of a new video, Through the ears of a child.
The facts
Around 360 million people live with disabling hearing loss; of these, nearly 32 million are children.
According to the World Health Organisation, up to five of every 1,000 infants are born with or develop disabling hearing loss in early childhood.
Research shows that children with hearing loss are more likely to benefit from a hearing implant if it is received at a young age, before they learn to speak.
Early intervention also means that children with severe hearing loss can achieve close to normal oral communication and sound detection skills, which means they can develop and learn at the same rate as other children.
Typical signs of hearing loss
• Child does not react to loud sounds.
• Child is unable to detect where a sound is coming from.
• Child may start to babble, but soon stops.
• Babbling does not develop into understandable speech.
• Child does not react to voices, especially when he or she is not being held.
• Child does not follow commands or misunderstands directions.
• Child may start acting frustrated.
Your child may be a candidate for a cochlear implant if he or she:
• has a profound sensorineural hearing loss in both ears;
• receives little or no benefit from hearing aids;
• has no contraindication preventing surgery;
• has access to appropriate education and rehabilitation follow-up;
• has access to an environment that supports successful learning and rehabilitation with a hearing implant.
Where to find out more
Individuals and families considering treatment option for deafness or hearing loss can reach out to the HearPeers Mentor Programme. HearPeers mentors provide a source of unbiased, real life stories which give people the opportunity to truly understand the experience of a hearing implant.
Visit HearPeers to get in touch with one of the mentors.