Thesis (M.Sc. ) - Cairo University - Faculty of Medicine - Department of Pediatrics

Background: Hearing impairment in children constitutes a particularly serious obstacle to their optimal development. Congenital cytomegalovirus (cCMV) is the leading non-genetic cause of permanent hearing impairment in children. Early detection of hearing impairment is vital since early intervention including hearing aids and speech therapy will help them to enjoy equal opportunities in society alongside all other children. Objectives: Implications of a targeted screening approach in which a failed newborn hearing screening test (NBHS) test is used as the impetus to test for asymptomatic cCMV. Also, to estimate the prevalence of hearing impairment caused by congenital CMV in babies born at Cairo University Pediatric Hospital (CUSPH). Patients and methods: This study was a cross-sectional study that included 500 apparently healthy full-term neonates, recruited from the inborn maternal unit in Kasr Al Ainy, Cairo University Hospitals, over the course of a year.Combined hearing screening tests consisting of automated auditory brainstem response (AABR) and transient evoked otoacoustic emissions (TEOAE) were performed sequentially on each patient prior to discharge from the well- baby nursery. Results: The prevalence of hearing impairment among seemingly healthy full-term neonates was 0.8%. Of the newborns who failed their hearing screening test in our study, 3.8% were found to have cCMV infection. History of previous abortion, history of sibling death and history of maternal fever were significant among those newborns who failed hearing screening tests and were CMV-positive

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