Hearing screenings are a great way to identify hearing difficulties early on. According to the National Institute of Health, about two out of every 1,000 children in the United States is born with a level of hearing loss. Early intervention is crucial to a child’s development and treatment. In some cases, babies pass initial hearing screenings but develop hearing loss later. Here are some signs that your child may have hearing difficulties and should have an appointment at a hearing test center.

Infants and Toddlers

In the infant and toddler stages it may be more difficult to detect hearing problems. One sign can be delayed or absent speech development. For many children, this is the most important clue that shows up. Your pediatrician will watch for specific developmental milestones. When children are not hitting these milestones, it could be attributed to hearing loss. If hearing loss is detected early enough, then treatment interventions can be put in place to help speech and language develop.

Older Children

Surprisingly, after a child has developed their speech, it is often even more difficult to detect hearing difficulties. The reason for this is that by this stage the child may have developed coping techniques that help them compensate for the hearing loss. Some common coping techniques are issues with hearing that seem to come and go, turning the volume up very loud on the TV, and asking for people to repeat themselves. Another sign might be that you notice the child leans toward you with one ear rather than the other.

Many children with hearing loss also experience trouble in school. Hearing loss in older children is often attributed to many other things. These children may be mistakenly labeled as inattentive or disobedient. Since their hearing issues make it difficult to carry out tasks, adults often become frustrated with their behaviors quickly.

There can be several reasons for acquired hearing loss in infants, toddlers, and older children. The most important thing is to seek out professional help as soon as you suspect your child has hearing loss. Early intervention and treatments at a hearing test center can help.

If your child is in need of hearing aids, then please contact us today to schedule an appointment at our hearing test center. We are here for all of your hearing device needs. At Accuracy First, we even offer free hearing evaluations.