In general, it is not necessary for your toddler to get their hearing tested until she is ready for school. Until that point, unless there are specific signs of hearing loss in your toddler or if she has certain risk factors, a hearing test is probably not required.

There are certain behaviors and signs that you should watch for that might indicate that your toddler has some form of trouble with hearing. These can include:

- Your toddler tends to not notice other people until they see them.

- Your toddler doesn’t always answer or come when he is called. Of course, this sometimes can be due to innattention or defiance, but if it is a regular pattern there may be another issue.

- Your toddler tends to lean to one side when listening to someone speaking. This can indicate a hearing problem in just one ear.

- Your toddler tends to notice some sounds but not others. This can indicate a problem with being unable to only hear high-pitched noises and sounds.

- Your child has trouble with balance.

Because hearing is an integral part of being able to learn language and speech skills, if you suspect that your toddler may have a hearing difficulty of some sort you should contact your health care provider immediately.

If your toddler is prone to hearing loss, you might consider having her tested. These risk factors can include:

- a family history of hearing difficulties, particularly of childhood hearing loss.
- Certain infections that are known to cause hearing problems, such as mumps or bacterial meningitis.
- head trauma.
- disorders of or problems with the function of the eustachian tubes.
- A variety of degenerative disorders or sensory-motor neuropathies.

A hearing test is generally designed with a “pass or fail” type of scoring. If your toddler’s hearing is within normal limits, he will pass. If he does not pass, he will probably be referred to an audiologist or other health care provider.

Posted in Baby and Toddler

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