Newborn hearing screening is a quick, painless check done in the first days or weeks of life to find babies who may have permanent hearing loss. About 1 to 3 in every 1,000 babies are born with significant hearing loss, and most have no family history.
Screening sorts babies into those who pass and those who need fuller testing. A refer result is not a diagnosis: most babies who do not pass the first screen turn out to have normal hearing.
What Neonatal Hearing Screening shows
Two automated methods are used. Otoacoustic emissions, OAE, place a soft tip in the ear that plays clicks and records the faint echo produced by healthy hair cells of the inner ear. Automated auditory brainstem response, AABR, plays clicks through small earphones while three skin sensors record the hearing nerve and brainstem response. Each gives a pass or refer result for each ear. They detect moderate or worse loss. They do not measure exact hearing levels, and they can miss mild loss or loss that develops later in childhood.
When Neonatal Hearing Screening is recommended
- Every newborn, ideally before leaving the maternity unit or within the first month
- Babies who spent more than 5 days in neonatal intensive care, who should have AABR
- Babies with a family history of childhood deafness
- Babies exposed to infections such as congenital CMV, or treated with antibiotics that can affect hearing
- Babies with head and face differences or severe jaundice
- Infants who missed screening at birth
Limits and situations where another test is better:
- A pass does not rule out later-onset or progressive hearing loss, so act on any later concern about hearing or speech
- OAE cannot detect problems of the hearing nerve; AABR is needed for high-risk babies
- A refer result must be followed by diagnostic ABR testing, not by repeated screens for months
How to prepare
- Feed your baby shortly beforehand so that they are settled or asleep
- Bring the baby's health record and any birth or intensive care details
- Choose a quiet time; the test cannot be read if the baby is crying or moving a lot
What happens during the test
The screen takes 5 to 15 minutes while your baby sleeps or rests quietly in your arms or a cot. For OAE a small soft tip sits in the outer ear. For AABR, three sticky sensors are placed on the forehead, neck and shoulder and cushioned earphones cover the ears. Your baby feels nothing unpleasant, and you stay throughout.
Results and next steps
The result is given immediately. After a refer result the screen is usually repeated within days, as fluid left from birth is a common cause. If the second screen also refers, a full diagnostic assessment by a paediatric audiologist should follow within about 4 weeks. Confirmed hearing loss leads to early hearing aids, family support and, where appropriate, cochlear implant assessment.
- Test time: 5 to 15 minutes
- Results ready: Immediately
- Back to everyday activity: None
Safety and risks
- No physical risk to the baby
- False refer results that cause worry, often from fluid or noise
- False reassurance if mild or later-onset loss is present
Arranging Neonatal Hearing Screening in Türkiye
This test belongs where your baby is born and is never a reason to travel. It is relevant if you give birth in Türkiye, where screening is routine, or if you are staying in Istanbul with a young infant who missed screening. Any follow-up and hearing support must be arranged in the country where your child will grow up.
Send your previous reports and the question you want answered and a Clinic-Y coordinator replies within 24 hours with suitable teams and written, all-inclusive proposals side by side. Reviewing your case is free.
الأسئلة المتكررة
My baby startles at noise. Is screening still needed?
Yes. Babies with partial hearing loss still react to loud sounds, so behaviour at home cannot replace the screen.
Why does early detection matter so much?
The first years are when the brain learns language. Support started in the first months gives far better speech and language outcomes than support started after the age of two.
What if my baby did not pass in one ear only?
One-sided loss still matters and needs full diagnostic testing, although many of these results prove to be temporary.