Deaf children in Saudi Arabia

ABSTRACT

A study of 482 deaf children in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, showed hereditary factors to be the major cause. In a high percentage of children the cause of deafness could not be deterrmined audiograms of these patients were found to be similar to those of the hereditary group and it is therefore postulated that the 'unknown aetiology' group has a genetic basis for deafness. Complications of postnatal diseases such as meningitis, measles and otitis media accounted for about one-fifth of deaf children in this study. They remain an important group because they are amenable to treatment and prevention. On the other hand, consanguineous marriage, which is widely practised in Saudi Arabia, carries the danger of continued propagation of hereditary deafness; it should be actively discouraged