In traditional hearing tests, patients often have to indicate themselves if they hear something or what they understand. For young children, this is not always easy: they are sometimes too young to answer reliably or unmotivated to respond consistently. Active cooperation can also be difficult for children with developmental problems.
The new test at UZ Leuven aims to provide a solution. The child wears a cap with small, moist sponges on their head and watches an animated film for about half an hour. The test helps assess how well the patient can hear, with or without a hearing aid.
“"Even before the age of three, we want to know for sure if a child with hearing loss hears well with their hearing aid or cochlear implant and if anything needs to be adjusted. These are crucial years for speech and language development, but at the same time, it is precisely at this age that children are very difficult to test with traditional hearing examinations."
