Universal Newborn Hearing Screening

Each year in Washington state around 233 babies are born with hearing loss. With an incidence of approximately 3 in 1,000 births, hearing loss is the most frequently occurring birth defect.

The first two years of life are the most critical for learning speech and language, and unidentified hearing loss can severely impact a child's ability to learn these important skills.

Over 50% of babies born with hearing loss have no known risk factors for hearing loss, and 90% of babies with hearing loss are born to normal hearing parents.

Therefore, it is important to screen all newborns for hearing loss through universal newborn hearing screening programs. Currently, all birth hospitals in Washington state perform newborn hearing screening on all infants as the standard of care.

General Newborn Hearing Screening Information

• Washington State Department of Health Early Hearing-Loss Program Information
• Washington State EHDDI Learning Community  
• Contact Seattle Children's Audiology  

Resources

• National Center for Hearing Assessment and Management (NCHAM)  
• Babyhearing.org
• Northwest Lions Foundation for Sight and Hearing
• Washington Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics (WCAAP)  
• Medical Home Leadership Network
• Early Support for Infants and Toddlers (ESIT)
• Washington Sensory Disabilities Services (WSDS)
• American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA)
• American Academy of Audiology (AAA)
• Washington State Hands and Voices
• Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing  
• Parent to Parent (The Arc of Washington State)