deafdyke

Oh and just to add, just so you don't think we're all audilogically deaf, advocating for someone who's hoh, I am audilogically hoh (Born with moderately severe loss in both ears. Now sloping to profound in one ear/frequency, and mild-moderate my other ear)
I too also wish I'd had ASL and access to Deaf Ed as a kid. One of the HUGE problems with oral only and mainstreaming is that it can be very difficult to get accomondations. And teachers/experts think " Oh they don't sign..they don't need a lot of accomodnations or special stuff" If you took advantage of the Deaf ed system, then they wouldn't be able to get away with that. Trust me, dealing with Resource Room and public school sped is a nightmare. They usually aren't very good at educating low incidence disabilty students.
That is also a GREAT point you bring up shel!!!! Virtually ALL hoh people are OK one on one or maybe in small group situtions, but beyond that, they tend to be totally lost. Which is why things like ASL and cued speech and speechreading are also helpful.That is why you gotta give dhh kids a full toolbox, so they can easily code switch in different situtions.
Saying that oral only is enough for all situtions, is like saying that b/c you're a good driver in optimal situtions, you're a good driver in ALL situtions.

Deafness

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3littlemen

Grayson had more hearing testing done today. He had an OAE, and he PASSED in both ears! The significance of that OAE is that he has NEVER passed on his left ear...he has passed here and there on his right ear, but he has always failed on the left, so the fact that he passed on the left and right today is great! Then we went into the sound booth. He has been in the booth 2 other times and didn't do that well. He would respond to the audiologist speaking to him at 15 dB, which is normal, but he wouldn't really turn and look toward a static noise that they would play...only if it were pretty loud. I wasn't sure at the time if it was because he couldn't hear it or because he was bored and upset. Well, TODAY I couldn't believe it...he was looking every time! The only time he didn't turn and look toward the sound was after the aud had come in and given him a teddy bear...then she played the static noise at a very soft level...it was hard for me to even hear, so I am not surprised he didn't turn to that. He responded at levels of 10, 15, and 20 dB...he did have one time where they played a static sound and he responded when it was 30 dB, which would be in the range of a mild hearing loss, but she told me that she played it again later in the test and that he responded at 20, which is normal. She only tested 2 frequencies today, and I should have asked, but I am thinking that since we have had so much testing that she obviously tested his alleged worst hearing frequencies...that would make the most sense...I mean, why would she test his hearing first at the "best" frequencies based on other tests? Sooo...I'm going to assume she tested his "worst" frequencies for hearing, and anything 20 and up is normal hearing, so since he only had down to 30 and just that one time and he responded at 20 later in the test, I am going to assume he heard it at 20. Anyway, I'm so excited...I've been on an adrenaline rush ever since the appt...we are going for more booth testing in 2 weeks to see if he has the same kind of results. The audiologist today is my 3rd aud and she was very knowledgeable, and she seemed to agree with me that perhaps it really is his ear canals and that they are just getting bigger and letting more sound through, thus explaining his prior bad tests. We are still going to do an ABR under anesthesia, but I really don't even know what the point of that is...because they say they hold booth behavioral testing to a higher level of accuracy, so if he is responding normally and keeps getting those types of results, he may have "outgrown" it if there was an issue of conduction. All along the auds have been saying it is permanent and that with the ABRs his nerve is not responding to all sounds. WELL, that would make sense because how can the nerve respond if the sound is not hitting the drum properly because his ear canals are funny? And this aud agreed with me, but there are also other things that can explain his good testing today, like a fluctuating loss....and she also said there COULD be undetectable fluid in his ears, because the tests they use for that are not great for babies and usually just detect a large amount of fluid, but she said he could have a small amount and that he could have had it all this time. She also said sometimes the chemical composition of fluid in the cochlea is not right and that it can damage cells and then the fluid changes and the hearing is better because it's no longer being damaged. I don't know. Just excited. My baby boy MAY not need his hearing aids if he keeps testing like this. He could be another story just like the nurse at my PCPs office whose son was said to have a hearing loss, and now he is 5 and doesn't.

Speedy Hawk

Probably grew up in hearing world and don't spend much with Deaf kids. There are plenty like this, esp now most of them are being mainstreamed.

ASLMommax2

Lauren I'de still continue with the sedated ABR....not sure why they would have said those were the less proficient but I have always counted the results of the sedated ABR as the correct ones with my daughters. Are you being seen at a Pediatric/Childrens Hospital? Has he had a CT Scan? You keep getting different results ........ kinda confusing to me it has to be that much more so to you!

GrendelQ

The tests measure different aspects of the auditory system, in the case of the OAE and ABR, one indicates how the inner ear is responding, the other evaluates the auditory brainstem response. They are complementary, and neither is definitive alone. The sleeping ABR is less susceptible to external variables (your child's mood, attention-span, external cues and hints that he might be picking up) that you see affecting some of the behavioral tests.

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posts from hell

I would ask the audi "Is sign language restricted to only these who are deaf?"

KristinaB

+1 - oral only here as well.

3littlemen

I know that OAEs and ABRs are completely different, but all 3 audiologists I have had said that booth testing is more reliable than an ABR, that an ABR is not a "hearing test" but a nerve test, and that they take a child's behavioral response in the sound booth over an ABR test. Maybe that is wrong, I don't know...but that is what all 3 of my audis have said, and since he passed the OAE today on both ears when he has never been able to pass in the left and then responded to all the tones at normal hearing level in the sound booth other than one, which was replayed later and he then responded at 20, I can't help but be a little confused.

We are most likely still going to do the 3rd ABR, but I have been in agony for months and months with all these conflicting results. The logical explanation for the 2nd ABR being worse is that his hearing loss progressed. Well, that doesn't make sense after today...how can it progress and he respond to the static sounding tones at 15 dB...and even 10 dB??

I am just confused! I don't want a CT scan on him because he had one last June after his carseat malfunctioned and he fell onto pavement in a parking lot. Unfortunately, we didn't know he had a hearing loss or we would have had them image that then. I just don't want him to have all that radiation again in the same year, so we are going to do an MRI instead after the ABR.

It will be interesting to me to see how he does in 2 weeks with the booth testing and then to see the ABR results.

posts from hell

Why test so much and be in so much agony?

You can sign and speak at the same time if you want.

studies has shown that even hearing babies benefit from signing language and progress faster.

So results either way:
If your baby is hard of hearing, he still has access to sign and some sound.
If hes hearing, he has access to both.

Why in so much agony? I dont get it.

3littlemen

Well, I just don't want him to have hearing aids if he doesn't need them. Obviously no one wants that. And if he does have a progressive loss, I would certainly invest more time in learning sign. Right now, I know some very basic baby signs that I do with him, but he really doesn't seem interested. I try and try, but he has not reciprocated yet. My oldest would sign with me, and he is hearing.

I just want to know either way, and it is just hard and frustrating not having a clear answer, you know? One person says this, the other says that. I just want to know the truth so I can make a plan for him. I feel like I can't make a plan without knowing for sure. And I would LOVE to become fluent in sign if that is what he needs, but...and I don't mean this to sound terrible...I have three boys who take up so much of my day, and I also work from home and am in school...so learning sign would be one more thing on my plate. Now, if that is what he NEEDS, then absolutely...I would quit my online classes if that is what it takes. But at this point I am not even sure if he has a hearing loss, and neither is his new audiologist or his parental adviser. And if he does have one, well, what kind?

I just want to make the best decisions for him, and of course I have no problem learning sign language, and as I said, I am already signing basic things with him against the advice of the audis...but fluency in ASL is not a goal for me unless his loss is progressing. I still plan to incorporate basic signs and basic phrases, but like I said...I already don't have time to devote to working and classes as it is...but if he needs it, I will quit.

posts from hell

makes sense. hope you find out soon

3littlemen

Thank you! I hope so too! Ever since this all began, I have not really cared so much about the diagnosis of hearing, hearing loss, progressive hearing loss, etc...I just want a consistent answer, and now today is just adding another thread to the web!

Thanks!!

deafdyke

Completly understood! So it's not the potential loss, it's just you really don't know. Hard to make plans when you just don't know.
It might be just a fluke. I will tell you that I've had ABR and they showed my loss to be profound, even thou I have a hoh loss.

3littlemen

That is exactly it, and that's all it has ever been. I can't speak for deaf or HOH, but I know that most every hearing parent is going to go through a grieving process over their child's hearing loss. I feel like I have never been able to do that because every test changes, and it is obviously not just changing in a progressive direction since today's testing was I basically normal! I'm trying not to be irrational and tell myself that this is just one of the many he has had and that he has been shown to have hearing loss on others, BUT I keep also telling myself that had he just gone in today for hearing testing for the first time that we would have walked out today with a "hearing" child and no diagnosis of a loss.

My parental adviser actually cracked up on the phone when I told her. It is almost funny how many different things I have been told and been through these past 5 months. It is crazy! But I really feel like I'm in good hands now with our new audiologist. She was an audiologist in the twin cities in Minnesota, and she has a lot of experience. She seemed to really understand the points that I made and often made them before I got a chance to.

I just want to know!

I really appreciate all of your answers and input, deafdyke...you are very helpful, and since you share the same sort of loss, I would love to continue to get your input and thoughts. I find it interesting that your ABR showed a more severe loss than you actually have...and I do know they can be wrong. I spent many, many hours researching ABR tests in medical journals, etc., and I think I read that 4-8% can be a false positive test in studies...I may be completely off in that number, but it was a significant percentage. 4-8% may not seem like a lot...but 4 in 100 ABRs being wrong and those kids diagnosed with hearing loss is pretty significant.

Sarfarigirl2011

I had hearing loss as a baby though

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jillio

To address your first question: the tests you named are used for screening purposes...to tell you whether there is a possibility of a hearing loss. They really aren't very accurate and making a definitive diagnosis based on levels of hearing loss. The most accurate way to determine that is through testing that requires the child's responses to sounds, and that, unfortunately, does not come until about age 2. Even kids that show a profound loss with the ABR have been known to show a much lesser loss when response testing is done. The point is not really the level of hearing loss, but how the child responds to his hearing loss. Some people with a profound loss can speak very well, while some with just a moderate loss are unable to do so. There are just so many variables involved.

BTW: beautiful family!

deafdyke

Really jillo? I recall faire joure saying that a really talented audi can tell how well a toddler can hear with hearing aids, and can tell if they need a CI or not, if they are an ambigious canidate.
And yeah....there are kids with profound losses who can benifit from HA, just as their are kids with hoh losses who can benifit from HA.

alley8892

hi i have a son that is 9 months old and was born at 26 weeks. he has profound hearing lost. My son just got his hearing aides today, all he does is sleep! i want to know if you have any suggestions about hearing aides? i do make sound and he doesnt look right away to the direction it is coming from. should i give him some time to get used to them? im new to this please help! thank you

softabak

Maybe give him time to get used to them? If you want his attention, try flicking the lights on and off in a room.

softabak

He's soooooooo cute!!

Ashli

My son is 3.5 months and has been wearing his hearing aids for about 4 weeks. He has moderate-severe loss. One ear supposedly hears better at high frequencies.
His two ABRs were pretty consistent so I am not having the diagnosis concerns you are but I am having the same struggles with decisions. I just want him to reach his full potential however that may be.
We do sign with him. I sign as much as possible and just teach myself bit by bit. His Dad and I will take formal lessons eventually. I know more sign than Dad and am his main teacher. I had more time to learn while on maternity. We both work. We do have a hearing daughter who is almost 4. Our son goes to daycare at her school and the teachers are trying to do some basic signing with him too and help him along however they can but I am really his primary teacher and I do feel guilt that he has to spend so much of his day there. But it's a truly loving environment with staff that we've come to know so well for over 3 years. And he's being exposed to more faces and language there I suppose.
Our parent advisor is very pro-sign. She agrees that there is lots of controversy and both sides have arguments to their preference. But she feels that signing with our son can only help him and believes in the evidence supporting its positive effect on language even if the child goes oral. She said do both and he'll decide. Her advice for now is to focus on vocabulary. I do use simple asl phrases and look up words all the time so that I can sign as much as possible when we talk.
I think with such a supportive and proactive mom like you, Grayson will be just fine. Feel free to message me any time to chat! We have similar situations.

Oh and your boy is such a doll. My son wears bright blue earmolds with blue/silver aids, looks darn sharp in them and adorable in pictures! We wear them on him proudly.

Ashli

Oops just read the later posts about the newer testing. Missed that before....hope it works out how you want! We will do some behavioral testing when our son is around 7 months.

Moelza

Aw! Lovely pictures of Grayson! What a doll!

I'm deaf myself and I used hearing aids all of my life until the age of 21, I decided to go for Cochlear Implants (CI).

When I was a baby, between 6-9mths, my parents took me to the docs and the doc walked behind me and clapped his hand, i turned around and the doc said.. she's FINEEEEEE.... my parents was furious, they knew that i was a very curious baby and of course, if someone walk behind me, i would turn around to see whats up. crazy how the testing systems work back then and im surprised that it's still not accurate nowadays!! crazy.