The need for this book became apparent during a series of courses on child health surveillance on which the editor lectured to some 3000 medical practitioners over a 2 year period. The same questions arose repeatedly and it was clear that a basic text was needed, specifically to answer these questions at an appropriate level for non-specialist doctors who, nevertheless, have a significant and active role to play in helping to detect hearing problems. In the surgery parents' questions must be answered with insight and with awareness of the basic issues. They raise questions after ear, nose and throat (ENT) and audiological assessment sessions and they bring the terminology from those clinics, and from media coverage, into the doctor's surgery.

This book contains an introduction to paediatric audiology and addresses such questions as

Can hearing be tested in the newborn?

Can hearing aids and cochlear implants be supplied to babies before 3 months of age?

How do you interpret a tympanogram?

Why is masking undertaken in audiometry?

What is the purpose of bone-conduction testing?

How can infants hear quiet sounds but not discriminate speech?

What is a bone-anchored hearing aid?

Can cochlear implants restore hearing to normal?

What happens after hearing aids have been supplied or after cochlear implant surgery?

The answers are contained in the following pages and it is hoped that this book will be of value to any doctor who comes into contact with hearing-impaired children.