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Management of Children with Unilateral Hearing Loss |
A unilateral hearing loss affects only one ear, and may range from a mild impairment to a profound loss. Though some of these children could benefit from using a hearing aid, more severe losses may not be effectively aidable. Because one ear still has normal hearing, most children with a unilateral loss will hear well in most situations. They can, however, have difficulty with:
Locating the source of sounds they do hear
Hearing sounds directed towards the ear with impairment
Understanding speech or other sound sources in noisy backgrounds
Although many children with a unilateral hearing loss do well in school and are mostly unaffected by their impairment, some recent studies have shown that almost 30% are at risk for failing a grade in school. To minimize these potential problems, here are some suggestions to keep in mind.
At School:
Make sure the classroom is well-lit to allow for maximal visual input.
Provide seating which allows the good ear to be directed towards the teacher and away from extraneous noise sources (preferably within 10 feet of the teacher).
Use visual aids -- write important information on the blackboard or overhead projector.
Rephrase and restate information necessary for comprehension of tasks.
Use of a personal FM system, in which the teacher wears a microphone that transmits her voice either directly to headphones worn by the student or to a soundfield speaker system (benefiting all children in the room).
General Suggestions:
Counsel the child to be extremely vigilant and aware when crossing streets or riding bicycles in traffic – localization of sounds is something that kids with normal hearing bilaterally take for granted.
Closely monitor the child’s hearing status – have hearing tested annually to ensure that the normal ear remains so. In addition, be particularly aware of middle ear infections which could reduce hearing in the child’s better ear and cause major communication difficulties.
Provide ear protection (plugs or muffs) in very loud environments (i.e. concerts, hunting, racetrack) to protect the child’s hearing from further damage.
Strategies such as these will allow the child to benefit maximally from the hearing they have and prevent further reduction of their auditory abilities.