The doctors of AIIMS Delhi are trying to find out before the birth of the child i.e. in the womb itself, whether the child is able to hear or not. Dr. Kapil Sikka, Professor of ENT Department at AIIMS, told in a special conversation with TV9 Bharatvarsh that the department is trying to find out in the womb itself what is the hearing ability of the child. There are some tests regarding the hearing ability of the child growing in the mother’s womb. Through those tests, it is found out what his hearing power is.
He said that the problem is that its treatment is possible only once the child is born. But there are some methods which can give information about this in the womb itself. The department is working on the same methods. Dr. Kapil said that emphasis should also be laid on detecting hearing loss in new born children. Such as neonatal hearing screening should be done. Which can be done 24 to 48 hours after birth. In our institute we are doing universal neonatal hearing screening.
Why is screening necessary after birth?
Dr. Sikka said that if the hearing problem is identified in the first six months of birth, then treatment results are better and there is no serious impact on the child’s language development, but in many cases, neonatal hearing screening of the child is not done after birth. Because of this, it is not known whether the child is able to hear or not. Birth: He turns around 1 year old and does not respond to sounds, then the parents realize that the child has a problem. In such a situation, AIIMS is working in such a direction that the hearing ability of the child is tested in the womb itself.
What is the solution if a child has hearing problems?
Dr Kapil said that in most cases, babies who are diagnosed with severe hearing loss can be treated with a cochlear implant. He said advances such as auditory brain stem implants have helped restore hearing in more severe cases of nerve deafness.