Hearing Healthcare for Children in Developing Countries: A Global Perspective

Early identification and intervention of hearing loss is important in order to develop language skills during the critical period of language development. Universal newborn hearing screening programs have continued to grow in the United States and other developed countries as the standard care for early identification of hearing loss in infants. However, this program has not been widely implemented in developing countries. Hearing healthcare professionals are limited and resources are scarce in developing nations. This document provides an overview of hearing healthcare in developing nations, and presents the need for prevention, identification, and treatment of childhood hearing loss in these countries