THE INTERVENTION OF AUDIOLOGY WITH MOTHERS OR PEOPLE RESPONSIBLE FOR NEWBORNS PRESENTING HIGH RISK OF DEVELOPING AUDITORY DEFICIENCY AMING AT EARLY PREVENTION

Abstract

This work aims at evaluating an audiology intervention procedure by obtaining the rate of returns to a follow-up program for auditory development by mothers or people responsible for newborns with high risk of developing auditory deficiency and who presented a negative result in the otoacoustic emissions test performed before their discharge from hospital and the assessment of the reasons why the return had not taken place. Two groups of mothers or people responsible for newborns with risk of developing auditory deficiency were studied: experimental group, which consisted of mothers or people responsible for newborns hospitalized in the intermediate-care baby ward in the Pediatrics Sector of the University Hospital of the University of São Paulo at Ribeirão Preto Faculty of Medicine, and control group, whose information regarding the mothers or other responsible people as well as that concerning the newborns was obtained in a retrospective fashion from the medical records at the Medical Files Services of the hospital mentioned above. Although a high rate of absence from the follow-up program for auditory development was observed in both groups, 43.3% for the experimental group and 51.3% for control, there was a decrease of 15.6% for the experimental group in relation to control. Oblivion was the most frequently reported reason by the absent mothers in the experimental group (30.8% of the responses). The reason negative result in the otoacoustic emissions test was observed in only one (1.7%) of these mothers. reports. The findings show that the intervention was partly effective since, although the absence rate was still high in the experimental group, a reduction occurred. As a conclusion, we advise that professionals working with newborns presenting high risk of developing auditory deficiency be attentive in relation to their hearing. Mothers or other people responsible for such newborns must be well advised as to the importance of hearing and of the early detection of hearing deficiency in order to reduce more serious aggravations in the future.