Evidence · Systematic review or meta-analysis
Effectiveness of universal newborn hearing screening: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
- Allied health
- Eyes and hearing
- Medical
- Neurodevelopmental follow-up
- Newborn hearing screening
- Nursing
Summary
This PROSPERO-registered systematic review and meta-analysis assesses the effectiveness of universal newborn hearing screening compared with no universal screening for permanent bilateral hearing loss. It pooled five studies involving over one million newborns, examining identification of hearing loss, age at identification and later language and developmental outcomes. Screening was associated with earlier identification and possible neurodevelopmental benefit, although the certainty of evidence was low to very low. The authors support implementation of universal screening across high-, middle- and low-income settings.
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- Licence:
- Open (Creative Commons)
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