Profound Bilateral Sensorineural Hearing Loss in Nigerian Children: Any Shift in Etiology?

Abstract

Deafness, profound hearing loss, is a global problem. However, the causes of, attitudes toward, and management options for deafness differ considerably from region to region. This study seeks to identify the present causes of profound sensorineural hearing loss in Nigeria, which in our environment is almost synonymous to a life sentence of silence and isolation. This is a retrospective survey of children 15 years and below (M = 6.7 years, SD = 3.2). Of the 115 children included in this study, 64 (55.7%) were males, giving a male:female ratio of 5:4. Age group 1-3 years had the highest proportion of hearing loss, 33 (28.7%), and there was a progressive decline in frequency with advancing age. In about a third (34.8%) of patients, causes were unknown, probably congenital. The main acquired causes were febrile illness (18.3%), measles (13.9%), meningitis (8.7%), mumps (6.9%), or severe birth asphyxia (4.3%). Compared to the findings of two decades ago, we conclude that there is no significant shift yet in the etiology of profound sensorineural hearing loss in our environment.