ABSTRACT
Late diagnosis, late intervention, inconsistent followups, inadequate maintenance of hearing aids and bad outcome is something nobody amongst service provider in the field of audiology wishes to come across. The fact that many factors, elements and people are involved in the equation of service provision and outcome, therefore, it is very difficult to predict or contemplate what one does will bring good result. The age of diagnosis is one of the key element in this process. It marks the beginning of a long-term process and therefore, is considered a parameter of our concern. With a view to determine how much we take the hearing problem, seriously a study was conducted at the audiology clinic of UKM. The objective was to find out the age of diagnosis of hearing impairment among children with sensorineural hearing loss. A total of 221 children between the ages of 3 months and 15 years [median age 43.2 months] were retrospectively investigated. They represented all the three major ethnic groups and 13 states of Malaysia. Every child underwent a detailed investigation. The cause of the hearing loss could be found in 72% cases. Main causes were, neonatal jaundice 18%, congenital rubella 9.9%, prematurity 7.7%, hypoxia 7.3%, meningitis 3.7%, measles 4.9%, genetics 3.7%, syndromes 6.4%. The cause of the hearing loss could not be established in 28% of cases. The average age of diagnosis of hearing impairment was around 39 months. It was almost similar between boys and girls [38.1: 38.9 months] but higher in the muslim children [38.11 vs 37.4 months]. The age of diagnosis of hearing problem in different aetiological groups was unacceptably high. The age of diagnosis of hearing problem in different states was different. Late diagnosis was not related to financial background, family size and accessibility to the facility. The finding of this study is a cause of concern to us because it raises question about the importance people give to the hearing problem