The US Preventive Services Task Force recently issued a statement recommending that all newborn be screened for hearing loss.  In part, the statement says:

Importance

Children with hearing loss have increased difficulties with verbal and nonverbal communication skills, increased behavioral problems, decreased psychosocial well-being, and lower educational attainment compared with children with normal hearing.

Detection

Because half of the children with hearing loss have no identifiable risk factors, universal screening (instead of targeted screening) has been proposed to detect children with permanent congenital hearing loss (PCHL). There is good evidence that newborn hearing screening testing is highly accurate and leads to earlier identification and treatment of infants with hearing loss.

Benefits of Detection and Early Treatment

Good-quality evidence shows that early detection improves language outcomes.

Articles

• USPSTF Recommendation for Newborn Hearing Screening
• USPSTF Evidence Synthesis
• Systematic Review for USPSTF
• USPSTF Clinical Summary