Hearing
Cha-cha's diagnosis does not current include any issues with his hearing, however it hasn't always been that way. Back when he was 6 months old, he got his very first ear infection (a double and it happened to coincide with my return to work). He showed no symptoms except for a low grade fever. No crying, fussing, red ears, runny nose...it was very strange. He continued to get 6 double ear infections in 5 months. So much that we know that his hearing was distorted, but not sure exactly how much. At 11 1/2 months old, Cha-Cha had surgery to place tubes in his ears to help drain fluids, and they worked. After a while, one fell out and later that ear ruptured form another ear infection. It was then Cha-Cha suffered from a moderate hearing loss. Thankfully, his ear drum repaired itself and his hearing was restored. To this day, we don't know how his temporary hearing loss directly impaired his speech, however it definitely could have had some impact.
When children are having difficulties with their speech, one of the first things that should be looked at is their hearing. An audiologist can perform a comprehensive hearing test to rule out any hearing loss and an ENT can be consulted if your child has excess ear infections. The surgery of putting tubes in is quick and relatively painless, and took about a total of 10 minutes under gas anesthesia. It was an easy fix for Cha-Cha and it greatly helped in cutting back his ear infections and the amount of times he needed antibiotics.
Not a very inspiring post tonight, but I'm tired, I administered state testing today, and have been trying to do 10 things at once. I need to find a way to triple clone myself this week...
No comments:
Post a Comment