4 Yo with Abnormal Hearing Test

Hi C.!

I can tell in your posting how worried you are....please don't worry. The problem could be very simple, actually.

It's possible that she has fluid in her ear (ear infection) leftover from a cold. This can cause a slight temporary hearing loss. So can excessive ear wax in her ear, but he should've seen that if that was the case. If she is a girl who has had several ear infections in her young life, all of this would be a normal step to having a slight temporary hearing loss.

Of course it is very posssible that she could have a slight (not so temporary) hearing loss, too. If that is the case, depending on what her Audiogram (tests results) look like, the Dr might receommend hearing aids. Because we simply don't want her to miss any learning in school. Here's how it generally works:

The ENT (Ear, Nose, Throat) Dr is a specialist in the ear. The Audiologist is the specialist who performs the hearing test. His test will show any/all hearing loss for your daughter. The test will also show if the loss is due to fluid (temporary) or nerve loss (permanent). In my experience, the Dr will usually consult with the Audiologist for the best consideration of hearing aids vs. no hearing aids ONLY if the loss is NOT correctable by meds (antibiotics) or surgery (tubes).

Now, when you meet her new ENT, you need to feel comfortable with him. If not, make yourself feel better and get a 2nd opinion. There is nothing wrong with that :o)

I hope that I've eased your mind a little bit, and may have answered some of your questions along the way. Try not to worry, C.. I'm sure everything will be just fine.

~N. :O)

I was going to say almost exactly what Nicole said. Don't worry too much yet. My daughter had a temporary fluid that caused an abnormal test. She was worst case and we eventually had to put in tubes, but even that was easy too. She is now almost 9 and no tubes and perfect hearing. Good luck to you and your daughter. I'm sure she will be fine.

My answer is similar to the first one - it could be a very simple fix. My 6yo son was being screened by an ENT for possibly enlarged tonsils and adenoids, so I was shocked to be told he had very thick glue-like fluid in his ears, which probably explained why he always spoke at a high volume. His hearing exam showed that he was not hearing anywhere near normal, and the ENT recommended ear tubes. It was a simple and quick procedure and he can now hear so much better! His behavior has improved, too. His teachers and I are very pleased with the changes, and so is he. Best of luck to you and your daughter.

When my daughter was 4 she had the same check-up hearing test and it was abnormal. The specialist found that she had fluid behind her eardrums and was very hard of hearing.
This was caused by a double inner ear infection that went unnoticed. (some children have high threshholds for pain) Once the fluid was drained, her hearing came back, although it took about a month. I felt soooooo guilty because I use to get mad thinking she was ignoring me, but she was actually lip reading to communicate and had to see us to know we were talking to her. OOPS! my bad :)

(Apologies in advance for this being long!)

It is good that you have had this screening so you can help make sure she catches more of what is going on around her. A lot of what you can do is actually very simple (and very helpful to MANY people). Face her when you talk, get her attention first. Make sure the background noise is not interfering or competing with what she needs to hear (you talking for example). Have her repeat back to you what she is supposed to do to check her comprehension. Things like that. Do them all in a natural way so she doesnt feel embarassed.

My son is Deaf and wears hearing aids. He is going to first grade (reading at 2nd/3rd grade level tho) with an interpreter. We lived in CA where he passed his hearing test with flying colors at birth. There was a month as a toddler he could not hear anything. By the time we got him tested however, his hearing came back and was fine. We think maybe he had a cold/congestion but that was weird. Then after we moved to AZ that summer he turned 3, he again seemed to have some hearing loss (not as severe. Just didnt hear things like oven timers, etc which I dont hear either as I am Deaf myself too)

Anyway, we grieved and were shocked and all that, which was kind of surprising because I thought it would be easy since we were deaf and know what it's like, school options, and all that. But it was still a very tough time for us. Just trying to find out WHERE to go, WHAT to do, WHO to see, man, that was not fun! And unfortunately I am in AZ and cannot tell you where to go, who to see in CA, so I am not a lot of help here. I do want to help you though so please feel free to send me a message and ask whatever questions you may have if you are reading this.

C., you are your child's best advocate when it comes to her education. If your daughter's hearing loss is a permanent one and severe enough, then probably hearing aids (which I suspect will NOT be the case here for her. You'll have to find out from the audiologist & ENT what's going on in her case. )

You ask what options are for correcting a partial hearing loss - if it is a permanent loss, most likely hearing aids, if it's a significant enough loss. (In AZ, there is a place - Children's Rehabilitative Services (CRS) that provides free hearing aids & care. Not sure if CA has an equivalent.)

Since she has a partial loss, not a complete loss, don't go for Cochlear Implants (CI's). CI's were designed for those who had hearing then lost ALL hearing and it is a major surgery coupled with therapy to re-learn how to hear. Hearing aids you just wear (or not) and that's that. Hearing aids are far cheaper than CI's and far less risky, but insurance companies and sponsors often cover the cost for CI's but not hearing aids, which makes me mad.
I need hearing aids as one of mine is broken now but insurance wont cover it. They will cover a CI though but I dont want to lose what hearing I *do* have in order to get a CI that may (or may not) work. I am not opposed to CI's as I have friends that have them and I even have considered them but I do feel it is a major decision to be made, and it is NOT a "fix" as the child with a CI is STILL deaf and STILL benefits from signing and other skills.

A CI is not for me since hearing aids work fine for me, I *love* listening to music and my little boy. I cannot lipread to save my life without also having my hearing aids!! :-P Anybody out there that works in the health insurance/legislative/medical fields, please help make this change!

Make sure you work with someone that is EXPERIENCED & GOOD at testing toddlers! AARGH I still remember the frustration at repeated testing because they were 'inconclusive' and all because the thing they put in his ear kept falling out as he wriggled during the test! stupid!

Go to your school district - you should already know which one you're in ;-) Tell them you need preschool/Early Intervention services and then go from there. They will be able to tell you additional resources in your area, as well as what the school themselves offer. (If you go through them, no charge to you. If you go through your doctor, the bill is yours.)

And a final note. The Deaf community is a wealth of culture and knowledge - do not shy away or "protect" your daughter from it. Pick and choose the best parts of it (which in my opinion is sign language - something everyone should learn at least a little bit of. Start with Signing Time dvd's from the library, your 4yo will probably love it!) Let your daughter be the most she can be, and she can do ANYTHING! There are NO barriers with deafness, only in communicating with sign-impaired people. :-)

C., I was diagnosed with a slight hearing loss when I was in first grade. The school nurse (or whoever was doing the tests) scared my mom to death about my hearing and I went to several drs. The upshot was, they monitored it for a few years, and then said it wasn't getting worse, I could live with it. I'm 43 now, and don't hear as well out of my left ear as my right, but other than occasionally needing things repeated, or the tv louder than my husband would have it, there have been no problems.

Have your daughter checked, but try not to be freaked out - additional screening means they will likely put your daughter in a soundproof booth and use headphones when they check her ears. They will ask her to raise her hand depending on which ear she hears a tone in. She may have to repeat words that are said to her. They will likely look inside her ears and play whispering games. She will have fun, as long as you aren't too worried. Good luck and let us know how it goes.

when he couldn't hear. Children with hearing loss don't know they can't hear or didn't understand correctly, so failure to understand it can seriously damage a child's self-esteem, cause frustration and behavior problems and delay social development (if you don't hear the other children well and/or respond appropriately, isolation can happen -- with less practice, kids develop social skills slower). With knowledge, you can avoid this happening to your child. Even temporary or intermittent hearing losses interfere with language development and learning.

S.