Paediatric Audiological Medicine
Chapter One
Epidemiology of permanent childhood
hearing impairment
A. Davis, K. Davis and G. Mencher
INTRODUCTION
Hearing impairment is the most frequent sensory impairment in humans, with significant social
and psychological implications. The effect of the impairment will vary from individual to
individual due to factors such as severity, age of onset, treatment / management options and
the hearing status of their parents. It is likely that the greatest impact of hearing impairment
upon a child is on the acquisition of language and development of communication, which in
turn can lead to poor literacy skills and altered long-term employment opportunities. It is
likely that other areas of development will also be affected, for example, mental health, with
one study finding 50% of a sample of hearing-impaired 11- to 16-year-olds met diagnostic
criteria for a mental illness.
Despite these difficulties, it is possible that, given adequate support, their impact may be
reduced. For example, language development may be enhanced through the use of language
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