Detecting permanent hearing loss in newborns

Abstract

From year 2003, the UNHS nationwide survey was commenced in Italy by the Italian Institute of Social Medicine, and was conducted in all Italian maternity hospitals in 2003, 2006 and 2008. All maternity wards active in Italy were included.

Results: Our study showed that the coverage and penetration of the UNHS programmes in Italy has increased from 2003 to 2008. At the end of 2008, 324,537 newborns (60.6% of the total) were screened in Italian maternity hospitals. The referral rate before discharge varied from 2.6 to 16.7%, and this situation is reflected in a significant increase in costs.

Conclusions: Considering the high cost of audiological confirmation, the first objective is to reduce the number of referred cases (false positives), by improving the training of screening personnel. In addition, close cooperation between audiological centres and maternity units and a dedicated secretariat team are important in increasing the efficacy of universal hearing screening. The investment in prevention will be repaid many times over.