Childhood deafness in the Indian population of Natal.

A study of 212 Indian children at the V.A. Naik School for Deaf was undertaken to determine the aetiology of their deafness. Undifferentiated autosomal recessive deafness was more frequent among Muslim patients--a population with a high incidence of consanguineous marriages--than among Tamils and Hindus. Although fewer than expected genetic syndromes were identified, Waardenburg's syndrome was present in 2% of the pupils. A firm diagnosis of acquired deafness was obtained in 32 children (15%).