Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the spectrum of sensorineural hearing loss in prospective cochlear implant candidates.
Methodology: Patients reporting to the Otolaryngology outpatient and willing for rehabilitation via cochlear implant were included in this study. Children either born with or developing hearing loss in early childhood were included in this cross-sectional cohort study, while those having coexisting middle ear diseases, and mental retardation were excluded. Hearing loss was confirmed by Brain stem evoked response audiometry (BERA), Auditory steady-state response (ASSR) and/or Pure-tone Audiometry.
Results: An overwhelming majority of the patients (97.4%) were pre-lingual deaf. Consanguinity remained the most common risk factor (94.1%).
Conclusion: Parental consanguinity remains a major risk factor for hearing loss in children. A more effective social campaign needs to be implemented to highlight and address this preventable cause.

Key words: Consanguineous marriage, hearing loss, cochlear implant, pre-lingual deafness, child health.