Background and Aim: Hyperbilirubinemia is one of the most common abnormalities during the neonatal period. Approximately 60% full-term and 80% preterm neonates suffer from hyperbilirubinemia. Hearing loss is one of the most prevalent side-effects of hyperbilirubinemia. This happens when the serum concentration of indirect bilirubin increases dramatically. The main purpose of this study is to evaluate the hearing status and to diagnose the probable site of lesion in affected children.
Materiads and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 33 newborn to two year old subjects uffering from hyperbilirubinemia were evaluated using auditory brainstem response (ABR) and transient evoked otoacoustic emissions (TEOAE) tests In the Audiology department of the Faculty of Rehabilitation Sciences Iran University of Medical Sciences sampling method was accessible.
Results: 21% of the subjects had severe to profound hearing loss and 9% of subjects had mild to moderate hearing loss. In 51% of the subjects there was no response to ABR and TEOAE tests indicating cochlear and/or retrocochlear lesion. The other 15% manifest only abnormal ABR test indicating the presence of the auditory neuropathy.
Conclusion: TEOAEs test has its own limitations in these subjects, that is the hearing status of such patients can not be completely evaluated by using just TEOAE test. Therefore, to detect hearing loss both ABR and TEOAE tests must be performed in these subjects.