Prevalence of hearing impairment among school children in the Gampaha District of Sri Lanka

Background: Normal hearing in a child is vital for acquisition of language skills, literacy, educational achievements, socialization and overall school performances. Globally, data on prevalence of childhood hearing impairment (HI) is sparse and Sri Lanka is not an exception.

Objectives: To describe the prevalence of HI among Sri Lankan school children and to assess the feasibility and effectiveness of a screening programme.

Method: A descriptive cross sectional study was conducted in Gampaha district, covering all educational zones. Screening for HI, in randomly selected 984 students was carried out at schools using otoscopy, pure tone audiometry and oto-acoustic emission. Children who failed at least one screening test were invited for a diagnostic testing carried out at the Faculty of Medicine, Ragama.

Results: Out of 984 students, 270 (27.4%) failed one or more screening tests. Out of this 199 children 73.7% turned up for the diagnostic testing and 40 (20.1%) were diagnosed to have HI. Minimal or mild HI was present in 32 (80%), three (7.5%) had severe and another three (7.5%) had profound HI. With correction for the children who defaulted the diagnostic test, prevalence of all types HI in this student population was 5.5%.

Conclusions: In this student population in the Gampaha district, prevalence of all types HI was 5.5%. The HI was mild in 80%, severe in 7.5% and profound in 7.5%.

Sri Lanka Journal of Child Health, 2021; 50(4): 617-621