Otolaryngology outcomes of infants with conductive hearing loss identified through universal newborn hearing screening.

Infants and children diagnosed with a conductive hearing loss (CHL) are often referred for otolaryngology assessment. Although this is also a regular occurrence for infants diagnosed with a CHL through Universal Newborn Hearing Screening (UNHS), less is known about these infants and their outcomes. Using a cohort of infants diagnosed with CHL through UNHS and referred to otolaryngology, this study aimed to investigate the relationship between specific demographic or clinical characteristics and 1) triage category 2) middle ear diagnosis and intervention and, 3) service-related factors at otolaryngology. Retrospective analysis through clinical chart review was performed on all infants born between January 2014 and December 2017 who referred on UNHS, diagnosed with a CHL and referred to the Queensland Children's Hospital. Descriptive analysis and Chi squared analysis was conducted on data from 95 records. Analysis between all infants referred from UNHS and those who referred, diagnosed with CHL and then referred to otolaryngology suggest that bilateral referrals/medical exclusion, preterm and infants with ≥1 risk factors are more readily associated with referral to otolaryngology for CHL. Nearly all (92.86 %) infants who were referred to otolaryngology had a primary diagnosis of OM and most infants (89.66 %) received grommets as an intervention. The average age of first appointment at otolaryngology was 427 days, the average age of intervention was 579 days and the average occasions of service at otolaryngology was 6.72. This paper provides a snapshot into the journey and outcomes of infants referred from UNHS, diagnosed with CHL, and referred to otolaryngology. Further investigation in both general and UNHS populations is needed to better understand and apply these findings.

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