Family Resources
What if my baby did not pass the Newborn Hearing Screening?

• If your baby does not pass the newborn hearing screening in the hospital, you will be referred for follow-up testing.
• Depending on where you live you will be referred for outpatient hearing screening or diagnostic hearing testing with a pediatric audiologist (within two weeks of discharge).
• Hospitals will provide information on next steps and often assist families in scheduling the follow-up appointment.
• Discuss the results and next steps with your baby's healthcare provider.
• If you have any questions, check with your state Early Hearing Detection and Intervention Program (EHDI).

The screening does not tell us the reason your baby did not pass. Further testing is needed as soon as possible and preferably within the next 2 weeks. Babies are learning how to communicate as soon as they are born, so it is important to know about your baby’s hearing early.

Although your baby passed the newborn hearing screen, a pass is not a pass for life. Some babies may develop hearing loss later in childhood. This is commonly known as late onset or progressive hearing loss. Talk with your babies healthcare provider if you have concerns.

One way to determine if your child is developing as they should is by monitoring important speech and hearing milestones. These milestones are easy to follow and can help you track development at different ages and stages.

Every state has an Early Hearing Detection and Intervention program (EHDI) that provides support and resources to families. Contact your state EHDI program.

Babies with family members who are deaf or hard of hearing and were identified at birth or early childhood are at greater risk for changes in their hearing over time. Even if your baby passes the screening, routine testing with a pediatric audiologist who specializes in testing infants and young children is recommended.

If your baby's pediatric audiologist confirms a hearing loss, treatment and early intervention with a team of experts should start as soon as possible. It is important for your child's development, that hearing loss is identified as early as possible so early intervention can begin.

Yes. If your child's newborn hearing screening results indicate that one ear passed and the other ear did not pass (referred), it is very important that follow-up testing on both ears be completed as soon as possible.

If not identified early, a child who has a hearing loss in one ear or a mild hearing loss can experience delays in development of language and communication skills.

No. Even though your baby startles to very loud sounds there is the possibility a hearing loss exists. Hearing loss in children occurs in varying types, degrees and levels of severity and can impact your child's ability to learn. It is important that further testing occurs as soon as possible and before 3 months of age with a pediatric audiologist who can determine if a hearing loss exists.

• Babies are learning how to communicate as soon as they are born, so it is important that follow up testing with a pediatric audiologist is completed as soon as possible, before 3 months of age.
• If diagnostic testing shows that your baby has a hearing loss, it is important that early intervention services begin as soon as hearing loss is identified.

Babies can have hearing loss even if there is no family history. In fact, 90% of babies with hearing loss are born to normal hearing parents. The hearing screening does not tell us why a baby did not pass. It just tells us that further testing is needed.

It is always a good idea to talk with your baby's healthcare provider about developmental milestones for cognitive development, social emotional development, language development, and pre-literacy/literacy development.