Karakteristik Fungsi Pendengaran pada Pasien dengan Keterlambatan Bicara di Sukabumi

Abstract

Speech delay in one of the most common development disorder found in early childhood. This study aims to analyze the characteristics of hearing function examination results in patients with speech delay in Sukabumi. This retrospective descriptive study utilized medical records of 31 patients at Syamsudin General Hospital and Praditha Clinic. Hearing evaluations were conducted via Otoacoustic Emission (OAE) and Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR). Most subjects were male (64.5%) with a mean age of 36.5 months. The most common initial diagnosis was speech delay (74%). OAE results indicated hearing impairment in 67.7% of patients (54.8% bilateral). ABR final diagnosis confirmed that 61.3% of patients suffered from bilateral Sensorineural Hearing Loss (SNHL) with a median hearing threshold of $80-81 \text{ dB}$ (severe degree). There is a high prevalence of severe SNHL among children with speech delay in Sukabumi. The detection delay, evident from the mean age of diagnosis (36 months), emphasizes the urgent need to strengthen Universal Newborn Hearing Screening (UNHS) programs to ensure early intervention.