The measurement of otoacoustic emissions can be performed after a few hours after birth. During this process, a device generates sounds from a range of different frequencies. In a healthy cochlea with normal sensory cells, these sounds are reflected back like an echo. The test device receives these reflected waves. This means that the outer, middle and inner ear are functioning correctly. What cannot be checked with this test are disorders of the auditory nerve or the brain.

In Western countries, bilateral hearing loss is very rare. It is about one child per 1000 newborns. More than half of these cases are genetic. This means that the mother or father or both are carriers of a gene that leads to hearing impairment. Both father and mother can have normal hearing and still be carriers of a defective chromosome, which is then passed on to the newborn. In less than half of cases, the hearing loss is not genetic. Reasons for hearing loss can be gestational diabetes in the mother, meningitis, encephalitis, measles or mumps in the child. Extreme prematurity can also be a trigger for hearing impairment. A hearing impairment has far-reaching consequences for the acquisition of spoken language, but also for the entire social and emotional development. With an early diagnosis and subsequent appropriate measures (family-oriented early intervention, adaptation of suitable aids), the consequences of these developmental delays can be reduced. Early diagnosis makes an important contribution to the child's overall development and can, above all, facilitate the child's communication and language development.

If the newborn does not pass the screening test, this does not necessarily mean that the child is hearing impaired. Slight head movements during measurement or fluid in the middle ear can cause the echo of the sounds sent to not be received. It is essential that the screening is then repeated after some time. If this test is also negative, brainstem audiometry is indicated. This allows a definitive statement as to whether the newborn can hear or not. However, this procedure is more complex. It is used to test whether the sounds are processed in the brainstem or not. This method also provides information as to whether the auditory nerve and the auditory center in the brain are functioning normally.

The hearing screening should be performed on both ears of all babies. The health insurance company pays for this test. Ask if you are not sure if the test was done on your baby. Birth centers or small hospitals that do not have a screening machine available must send babies to a pediatrician or clinic for screening. Even if your baby was born at home, hearing screening must be done.

If a child contracts meningitis, for example, at the age of two, a sensorineural hearing impairment (sensorineural hearing loss) can of course start later. Hearing loss can also occur due to obstruction or damage in the outer parts of the ear. Too much earwax or a ruptured eardrum will cause a conductive hearing loss. Such conductive hearing loss can also result from infections in the middle ear, where fluid accumulates. In the case of conductive hearing loss, significant improvement can usually be achieved with medical measures.

• Aktualisierte Empfehlung zum Neugeborenen-Hörscreening in der Schweiz
• Psychosoziale Implikationen des Neugeborenen-HörScreenings (NHS) für die Früherfassung und Frühförderung hörgeschädigter Kinder.
• Year 2007 Position Statement: Principles and Guidelines for Early Hearing Detection and Intervention Programs
• Swiss Medical Weekly - Evaluation of universal newborn hearing screening in Switzerland 2012 and follow-up data for Zurich
• Pilotprojekt zur Einführung des allgemeinen Hörscreenings bei Neugeborenen in der Schweiz. Veraguth, D. & Vischer, M. (2001). Paediatrica, 12(4), 30-31.

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