The dangers of neonatal hearing impairment: Neonatal hearing impairment is one of the common birth defects, with an incidence of about 3 per 1,000, much higher than that of phenylketonuria, congenital hypothyroidism and other newborn disease screening programs commonly carried out nationwide. The normal development of the auditory nerve center depends on adequate stimulation of sound during this sensitive period up to 1 year of age and the infant’s sustained application of the central auditory and speech systems. Hearing loss in infants will directly affect their language formation, leading to slurred articulation and even deafness. At the same time, the lag in language development can also affect the development of children’s intellectual, psychological and social skills, creating enormous physical, psychological and economic problems for their future lives and imposing a heavy burden on families and society. The importance of early detection of hearing impairment in babies: a child with normal hearing can master about 600 to 1000 words at the age of 3. Routine physical examinations and parental observation usually reveal hearing impairment only when the baby is about 2 years old, at which time rehabilitation training can only master less than 100 words by the age of 3. If the baby is diagnosed with hearing impairment at birth and rehabilitation training is conducted, the words mastered by the age of 3 will basically reach the level of normal children. Therefore, early detection of hearing impairment is crucial. Only early detection, early diagnosis and early intervention can enable the child to approach or reach the speech development level of normal children of the same age, reduce the adverse effects caused by hearing problems, and allow the child to experience the wonderful world of sound. How to detect hearing impairment in babies early? -Newborn hearing screening: Newborn hearing screening was first developed in Europe and the United States in the 1980s and 1990s, and in December 2004, the Ministry of Health of China has included newborn hearing screening into the statutory newborn screening program in China. It is an objective, rapid and non-invasive examination performed in the natural sleep or quiet state of the newborn after birth through electrophysiological techniques such as otoacoustic emission, automatic auditory brainstem response and acoustic conduction resistance. It usually takes only 5 to 10 minutes, and the probe used is soft, non-irritating, and moderately sized, with no damage to the baby’s ears or body. Newborn hearing screening process: The initial screening is performed 2-3 days after birth during hospitalization using a hearing screening device, and the results are divided into two types: pass and fail. Babies who “pass” the initial screening indicate that their current hearing function is basically normal; while babies who “fail” the screening are not necessarily hearing impaired (may be caused by environmental noise, ear canal blockage and other factors) and need to be rescreened within 42 days after birth. Most of those who did not pass the initial screening can pass the re-screening. If the baby does not pass the initial screening, he/she should go to a hearing diagnostic center within 3 months of age for further examination to determine whether there is a real hearing impairment and the degree and nature of the hearing impairment, and to provide appropriate rehabilitation treatment according to the specific circumstances of the hearing impairment. In the process of development, the hearing of babies who pass the screening may still be affected by many factors, such as acute infectious diseases, ototoxic drugs, otitis media and noise, etc. Therefore, we should continue to pay attention to the development of hearing and speech, and those who are able to do so should have their babies screened once a year between the ages of 0 and 6.