Trying to determine whether my preschooler has a partial hearing loss

[Anonymous]

He had "inconclusive" tests (a few of them) and we have reason to take this possibility seriously, but I need advice on the BEST place to go for a diagnosis (and possible treatment.)

Should I start with an audiogist or an ENT? Any suggestions on who/where? Happy to travel to Hopkins if they have the best dr.

Thanks!

[Anonymous]

If your child has hearing loss, he may end up seeing both the ENT and the audiologist. However, it is the audiologist who will actually perform hearing tests and diagnose the hearing loss. The ENT will help with determining if there is anything medically to be done about the hearing loss (for instance, if it stems from middle ear fluid or something like that) and to give clearance for amplification if necessary.

Where have you had testing done before? There are audiologists that are great with kids at Georgetown Hospital and other locations in town. One thing to keep in mind is that with young kids, it does often take multiple visits to get full information on hearing. There also are "objective" physiological tests like the ABR (auditory brainstem response test) that can be done to get an estimate of hearing if a child cannot or will not cooperate with behavioral testing. Ultimately, you want to keep trying until get the behavioral information, but in the meantime, the physiological tests can provide a starting point.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the response. It was Fairfax Child Find that initially tested him and poisnted out a potential problem. Tehn he went to Dr. Mantle who aslo tested him a few times with inconclusive results. Both parties have siad that ABR may be the way we'll find out with more certainty.

Are you suggesting we go right to ABR before spending who-knows-how-many more months doing behavioral testing?

[Anonymous]

Also, do you have anyone inparticualr at Georgetown you recommend? Thx!

[Anonymous]

PP here: If your child is a preschooler, trying behavioral testing with an experienced audiologist would be the way to go first. With that age group, the ABR would be done if multiple attempts at behavioral testing produced no or equivocal results or if your child has special circumstances that make him unable to complete the behavioral testing.