What? What did you say? I can't hear.

Hearing is vital for proper language and speech development, and hearing problems can lead to speech delay, impaired and incomprehensible speech, concentration difficulties, and learning problems

Tzvia Luzon, Leumit’s speech therapist

Hearing impairment is the most common sensory impairment in newborns, affecting 1-3 out of every 1000 infants. Besides congenital hearing impairment, there are also cases of hearing impairment due to diseases, ear infections, frequent ear infections, injury, medication use, treatments affecting hearing, and more. Some impairments are permanent, while others are temporary. Early detection of hearing problems is crucial, and starting treatment/rehabilitation as early as possible allows for the closure of developmental social, emotional, linguistic, and cognitive gaps.

When should you have a hearing test?

In Israel, every newborn born in a hospital undergoes a hearing screening test. The purpose of the screening test is to detect hearing problems as early as possible and initiate early treatment for infants with hearing problems. However, hearing problems can also arise later and result from various causes. If you feel that your child is not hearing well, or if you have one of the following warning signs, it is recommended to consult an ENT specialist for a hearing test:

No reaction to loud noises or startling, signs of unusual distress or discomfort to loud sounds
No response to name calling
Frequent engagement/touching/stroking of the ear area at a high frequency
Inability to understand simple instructions, of a single step (e.g., bring the ball, where's mommy? Come eat, etc.)
Speech acquisition difficulties: less than 10 words or word parts at 18 months of age, less than 20 sentences of two or more words at 24 months
Frequent ear infections or fluid in the ears
Need to increase TV volume or approach it excessively
Difficulty in pronouncing certain sounds
Mumbles, mutters, tendency to withdraw into an inner, personal world
Searching the speaker's face during conversation, difficulty understanding what is said when not facing the speaker
Complaints of noises inside the head
Language deficits, in comparison to peers

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What? What did you say? I can't hear.

When should you have a hearing test?