Hearing screening

Hearing is of vital importance for your child's psychosocial development.

Deafness in young children disrupts language learning and communication. In the event of a late diagnosis, deafness can lead to psychological isolation and a child falling behind or failing at school.

Hearing screening at birth

All newborns in Luxembourg get free hearing screening. The test is performed during or after the second day after your baby's birth, either:

• at the maternity hospital,
• on the premises of the Audiophonology Service (Service audiophonologique).

Two quick, painless tests

Current electrophysiological methods are used to carry out newborn hearing screening. These 2 tests are painless, quick and preferably done while your baby is asleep.

• Otoacoustic emissions (OAEs)
  An earphone is placed at the entrance to the baby's ear.
  When a sound reaches the inner ear, the hearing cells vibrate and produce an echo. This echo can be recorded and is proof that the ear is working properly.

• Auditory evoked potentials (AEPs)
  An earphone is placed at the entrance to the ear and functioning of the auditory cortex is recorded using calibrated sounds and three electrodes placed on the child's head.

Hearing screening at 30 months

The Audiophonology Service invites all parents of children aged 30 months to have a speech assessment during which a hearing test is also conducted. This assessment is known as the Bilan 30.

Children's hearing is tested using a little game in which they need to locate bass, mid and treble sounds at 40 dB. It is a quick and fun way of screening for temporary or permanent hearing problems.

School hearing screening in Cycle 1.2

The hearing of all children enrolled in Cycle 1.2 is checked by Audiophonology Service agents. The service's agents visit all nursery schools in the country, both public and private, to carry out a quick assessment of the children's hearing.

For this assessment, audiometers and headphones that emit calibrated sounds of different pitches are used. The child must indicate whether they can hear the sound and locate it.

Follow-up to hearing screenings

If standards and thresholds are not achieved during the Audiophonology Service's screening, a second screening is conducted.

If this second screening confirms the first result, the parents are invited for a diagnosis with a specialist ear, nose and throat (ENT) doctor.