الفهرس 
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Abstract
Hearing loss represents a common birth defect and is difficult to detect due to its invisible nature. Unfortunately, permanent childhood hearing loss has been described by some as ”neurologic emergency” as extended periods of auditory deprivation have a significant impact on the overall brain development and sensory integration of the child.
The hearing loss diagnosis must occur before the age of three months and the prosthetic rehabilitative treatment with a traditional hearing aid should start within the first six months.
This retrospective study was undertaken to form a close picture about the problem of SNHL in preschool children in upper Egypt, hopefully to draw the attention to the size of the problem and to help in the early diagnosis and intervention of such hearing loss. The aims of this study were to study the profile of sensorineural hearing loss in children attending the audiology unit, Sohag university hospital and to evaluate the intervention plan in those children.
All data were collected from the files of children examined in the audiology unit E.N.T. department, Sohag University Hospital in the period from January 2005 to December 2010. All patients’ files were examined to analyze the detailed history that was reported by the parents, main complaint, duration, time of onset and course of HL, prenatal, -perinatal and postnatal history, Family history of hearing loss or delayed language development, developmental history and speech and language. Then analysis of general medical and full otological examination (auricle, external canal, tympanic membrane).full audiological evaluation(Subjective and objective tests) and finally non audiological assessment: psychometry, speech &language, genetic analysis, any laboratory or radiological investigations if present.
This study showed that SNHL represents about 13.7% of all children who came complaining from either DLD or hearing loss, The main complaint was the delayed language development and this shows the strong effect of hearing loss on the language development in the children. The main problem in the results of this study was the delayed age of diagnosis of hearing loss and consequently the intervention age is delayed due to absence of neonatal hearing screening programs from one hand and the decreased awareness of the families about the importance of the early detection of hearing loss and its effect on the normal acquisition of language from the other hand.
The heridofamilial hearing loss represented the highest percentage among all known causes of hearing loss in this study and this can be explained by the traditions of the upper Egyptian families of the consanguineous marriage.
Binaural digital hearing aids are widely used and so the good aided response acquired with this type of fitting.
The poverty and illiteracy of our society had their impact on the results as the follow-up visits and speech therapy were irregular due to far places from the diagnostic & rehabilitative centers.
The general awareness about the problem of hearing loss and its effect on the acquisition of language must be increased and also the care of neonatal hearing screening programs especially in the neonatal intensive care units must be introduced.
Conclusions
from this study we can conclude the following :
1- Sensorineural hearing loss represents 13.7% among preschool children complaining from hearing problems
2- Delayed language development was the main complaint in preschool children with SNHL
3- Severe to profound sensorineural hearing loss was the most common degree of hearing loss (66.3%), and flat type was the most common configuration(17.2%).
4- The most common cause of SNHL in Upper Egypt was heredofamilial hearing loss as it represented (22.1%)
5- Delayed age of diagnosis and consequently late intervention resulted in unsatisfactory outcome.
6- 87.1% of the hearing aid users are using digital hearing aid, and the health insurance is the main source of these hearing aids in the Upper Egyptian society.