Copyright 2000 St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Inc.
St.
Louis Post-Dispatch
August 11, 2000, Friday, FIVE STAR LIFT
EDITION
SECTION: NEWS, Pg. A13
LENGTH: 208 words
HEADLINE:
HEARING TESTS ON NEWBORNS EARNS STATE POOR RATING
BYLINE: Marianna Riley; Of The Post-Dispatch
BODY:
Illinois scored well and Missouri
flunked in a national survey that rates how well states screen newborns' hearing
loss. The survey was conducted by the National Campaign for Hearing Health,
which tracked state-by-state screening procedures for hearing problems.
Survey data show that 46 percent of newborns nationwide are now
benefiting from early hearing impairment detection measures, up from 25 percent
in September.
Experts say that hearing problems can go undetected for
about 30 months when infants leave the hospital without a hearing test. But if
doctors detect hearing problems early, they can sometimes reverse the damage or
prevent future loss.
So far, Missouri does not fit into the improving
national picture. The survey's data show that only 14.5 percent of the state's
newborns are screened for hearing problems, up from nearly 11 percent in
September. These figures prompted an "unsatisfactory" rating.
By
contrast, Illinois has a "good" rating, with nearly 68 percent of its infants
screened, up from 9.2 percent in September.
Missouri's scores may change
dramatically within the next two years. Legislation enacted last year requires
all hospitals to provide newborn hearing screening starting in
January 2002.
LOAD-DATE: August 11, 2000
