Pützer Elena, van de Sand Heike, Filip Jasmin, Schubert Ingrid, Marschall Ursula, Meyer Ingo, Schäfer Karolin
Faculty of Human Sciences, Department of Special Education and Rehabilitation, Education and Aural Rehabilitation of People who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing, University of Cologne, Klosterstr. 79b, 50931, Cologne, Germany.
PMV Research Group, Medical Faculty and University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany.
HNO. 2025 Jun 17. doi: 10.1007/s00106-025-01617-0.
To date, data on the prevalence and age at first management of permanent childhood hearing loss in Germany are lacking.
This study aims to depict how often and at what age children and adolescents receive their (first) hearing technology.
In this study, we analyzed claims data from a large German statutory health insurance company (BARMER). A cross-sectional study determined the provision of hearing devices and cochlear implants for children and adolescents aged under 18 years with permanent hearing loss from 2010 to 2020. A longitudinal analysis of a cohort of children born in 2010 was performed to gain insights about age at first management with hearing technology during the first 10 years of life.
Between 2010 and 2020, approximately 2800 to 3600 children and adolescents per year were provided with hearing devices and 10 to 30 with cochlear implants. In the 2010 birth cohort, 1.22% of children received their first prescription for hearing devices before the age of 10. The proportionately highest number of first prescriptions was found between 3 and 6 years. In 2020, particularly few children gained access to hearing technology.
The analysis of the prescribed hearing systems reveals inaccuracies in documentation but also a possible care gap in hearing loss management. For a large percentage of children and adolescents, management of hearing loss took place after the age of 1. The frequent initial provision of hearing technology at preschool age indicates that the proportion of hearing loss that is acquired, detected late, or treated late remained quite high even after the introduction of newborn hearing screening. There is an obvious need for comprehensive tracking of children who fail newborn hearing screening and for other screening and hearing tests. The data for 2020 suggest that hearing loss was diagnosed and treated later due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
迄今为止，德国永久性儿童听力损失的患病率及首次干预年龄的数据尚缺。
本研究旨在描述儿童和青少年接受（首次）听力技术的频率及年龄。
在本研究中，我们分析了德国一家大型法定健康保险公司（BARMER）的理赔数据。一项横断面研究确定了2010年至2020年为18岁以下永久性听力损失的儿童和青少年提供听力设备及人工耳蜗的情况。对2010年出生队列的儿童进行纵向分析，以了解其在生命最初10年接受首次听力技术干预的年龄。
2010年至2020年期间，每年约有2800至3600名儿童和青少年获得听力设备，10至30人获得人工耳蜗。在2010年出生队列中，1.22%的儿童在10岁前首次开具了听力设备处方。首次处方数量比例最高的年龄段在3至6岁之间。2020年，获得听力技术的儿童特别少。
对所开具听力系统的分析揭示了记录不准确的问题，也显示出听力损失管理方面可能存在的护理缺口。对于很大比例的儿童和青少年，听力损失干预在1岁之后进行。学龄前频繁首次提供听力技术表明，即使在新生儿听力筛查实施后，后天性、发现晚或治疗晚的听力损失比例仍然相当高。显然需要对新生儿听力筛查未通过的儿童进行全面跟踪以及开展其他筛查和听力测试。2020年的数据表明，由于新冠疫情，听力损失的诊断和治疗有所延迟。
