Muhammad Irshad, Wajahat Bangash, Muhammad Tariq.
The role of Auditory Brain Stem Evoked responses in children with suspected deafness.
J Pak Inst Med Sci Jan ;15(1):828-33.

The study was conducted in neurology department, in collaboration with ENT department PIMS Islamabad. A total of 115 patients were included in this study. Detailed history along with ENT as well as neurological examination was undertaken of all the cases. Parents of patients were specifically inquired about the response to sound at home. Hearing threshold was estimated with "Auditory Brain Stem Evoked Response" testing (ABR). Out of 115 children 24 were found to have normal ABR test and normal click hearing threshold. Forty-six patients were having severe hearing deficit, and the threshold was 90 or above 90 dB on both sides. Twenty had severe hearing loss in one ear; the other ear had lower hearing threshold. The remaining children had mild to moderate hearing loss. Eighteen children _had positive family history of congenital deafness. In 43 children there was no significant illness in the past leading to deafness. Acquired cases were 30. Among them the most common causative illness was fever of unknown etiology (possibly viral) sometimes accompanied with chest infection. The parents did not remember the drugs used that could have caused the deafness. The second commonest cause was meningitis; in 2 cases gentamycin was used for diarrhoea. In patients who with normal hearing had retarded or delayed speech the common cause was mental sub-normality. The frequency of cousins marriage among the parent was 62%.

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