ABR Results

Katelyn went in for the Auditory Brain stem Response test on Thursday morning at the UVa Medical Center. The team of doctors have concluded that she is clinically Deaf. Katelyn's brain did not show a response to any sound below 70 dBa. Below is a scale to give you an idea of what level that is.



orignially found on:
http://vancouver.ca/engsvcs/projects/soundsmart/soundAndNoise.htm

What was most concerning is that the booth testing done by the audiologist in January tested a response down to 35 dBa at certain tones. It is possible that her hearing loss is progressive and will continue to diminish. I believe that she appeared to respond to sounds when she truly did not. She is very attuned to non-verbal communication and could easily read the body language of an adult to give false positive responses. Since the ABR and booth tests are not conducted in the same manner, the doctors want to conduct the booth test again to see if her responses are similar or different than the ABR.


Now that we know she is Deaf. What do we do?


1. Learn American Sign Language

Luckily, there are lots of resources online to learn ASL. My current favorite is http://lifeprint.com/. I have also used YouTube to look up particular signs. So far we have learned very few, but Katelyn is responding well and seeming to catch on.

2. Lots of Audiologist appointments

On Friday, April 6th Katelyn is fitted with her hearing aides. We are lucky that the Virginia Department of Health will loan a set for 6 months as we save to purchase a set for Katelyn. Approximately twice a year we will have to get new ear molds made since she is growing so much, but the actual hearing aides will work for 4-5 years.

Providing that her hearing does not diminish, we will also conduct the booth hearing test once per month to ensure that her hearing has flat lined rather than deteriorated. Overall, these appointments will track her ability to hear with hearing aides and without.

3. See a Genetic doctor.

Dr. Hashisaki, the Ear Nose and Throat Doctor, has referred us to Dr. Wilson, a Genetic Doctor. Hearing loss is also connected to other complications that can lead to loss in kidney function and vision loss. Looking at her DNA will show if certain conditions exist without doing a lot of testing. I am hopeful that we can find out the most information possible with the least amount of testing using the genetic doctor rather than other testing methods.

4. Monitor her closely.

Her age makes many traditional tests on the ears and the eyes difficult to conduct without error. The margin of error is the main reason they plan to conduct the hearing booth test once per month. In addition, she has a feisty temperament making cooperation even more difficult. They have assured me that the 'mothers know best' strategy is the best one to monitor the success of her hearing aides as well.

5. Be patient.

The most important thing to gain from all of this is patience. Hearing loss is stressful on our family, however, having patience with Katelyn and one another will ensure that we work together to manage the hearing loss in the best way possible. With patience and time we will overcome this obstacle together.

originally found on:
http://www.raisingdeafkids.org/help/tech/hearingaids/aidcare.php

Providing that hearing loss is the only disability Katelyn has, she should lead a rather normal life. Deaf individuals often surpass their hearing peers in both speech and vocabulary due to the amount of speech therapy they receive.

We hope the hearing aides will work and that her hearing will not continue to diminish. Please keep Katelyn in your thoughts and prayers