Evaluation of newborn hearing screening program in Jordan.

Introduction: The Newborn Hearing Screening (NHS) program was officially launched in Jordan in 2021. Since its inception, no studies have examined the effectiveness of the program. This study seeks to assess the effectiveness and outcomes of the NHS program in Jordan. Methods: A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted to investigate the program coverage rate, referral rate, loss to follow-up rate and the hearing status of newborns who successfully completed the necessary diagnostic assessment. Live births in all hospitals administered by the Ministry of Health (MoH) in Jordan from July 2021 to November 2023 were included. Results: Out of 25,825 newborns delivered, 99.4% (25,682) were screened. A referral rate of 0.7% (189) was recorded. Approximately 61.9% of those referred (n = 117) had normal hearing, while 31.7% (60 infants) were diagnosed with hearing loss. The prevalence of congenital hearing loss was 0.14%, and the mean age for identifying hearing loss was 11 months. Discussion: The current status of the NHS program in Jordan is promising. The program has achieved most benchmarks recommended by the Joint Committee on Infant Hearing (JCIH), demonstrating encouraging outcomes. There is a need to investigate and address the factors causing delays in the identification of hearing loss in Jordan.

Age of identification of sensorineural hearing loss and Characteristics of affected children: Findings from two cross-sectional studies in Saudi Arabia.

OBJECTIVES: To identify the average age of identification (AOI) and characteristics of Saudi children with sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL). METHODS: Two cross-sectional studies were undertaken. Study A: the medical records of 1166 children aged 0-10 years old who visited the audiology clinics in four hospitals in Riyadh and Dammam during 2015 were reviewed. Study B: 174 carers of children aged 0-12 years who visited the audiology clinics in four hospitals in Riyadh during a three-month period were surveyed. RESULTS: The mean AOI with SNHL in children was 3.2 years (SD = 2.5 years) and 3.1 years (SD = 2.6 years) with 14% and 16% not identified until after primary school age for Studies A and B, respectively. The presence of SNHL was positively associated with parental consanguinity, positive family history of SNHL, history of chemotherapy treatment, brain pathology and prior parental concern regarding their child's hearing. CONCLUSION: AOI of SNHL among Saudi children is deemed high in relation to the likely age of onset, with about 15 in 100 children identified after school age. Childhood hearing screening programmes (at birth and at school entry) should be considered in order to intervene earlier.