Congenital cytomegalovirus (cCMV) causes hearing loss for infants

Congenital Cytomegalovirus (cCMV) infection continues to be a public health problem because of its frequency (one in 200 live births) and its role in sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) in infants and young children. About 21 percent of all permanent hearing loss at birth is due to cCMV infection; by four years of age, 25 percent of childhood hearing loss is due to cCMV infection. Although infants with cCMV infection may have cognitive impairment, retinitis, and/or cerebral palsy following infection, SNHL is by far the most common sequelae following cCMV infection.

Hearing loss due to cCMV infection may be present at birth or occur later in the early years of life. Approximately 33 to 50 percent of SNHL due to cCMV infection occurs after the newborn period. Late-onset hearing loss occurs throughout the first several years of life, indicating that children with cCMV infection have to be evaluated for hearing characteristic at least annually till five to six years of age, if not longer. Approximately 50 percentage of children with SNHL following cCMV infection could have similarly hearing deterioration. Every other function of CMV-associated hearing loss is fluctuating hearing loss, which isn't explained by concurrent middle ear infections. Fluctuating hearing loss may most effective occur in one ear, at a few frequencies inside the ear, or in both ears if a toddler has bilateral hearing loss. About 30 to 50 percent of children with CMV-related listening to loss may have fluctuating loss.

Newborn hearing screening facilitates pick out toddlers who have permanent hearing loss as early as possible. These babies and their families can then get the support and advice they need right from the start.  The test just takes a few minutes. A small soft-tipped earpiece being placed in the baby’s ear and gentle clicking sounds are played. When an ear receives sound, the inner part (called the cochlea) responds. This can be picked up by the screening equipment.

Parents and healthcare providers should consider routine CMV testing for infants who fail the NHS. Targeted CMV screenings may not be able to identify all CMV-related hearing loss, but until universal CMV screening is implemented, this remains a valid approach to identify and treat infected infants.