Hearing loss following Hemophilus influenzae meningitis in infancy. Diagnosis by evoked response audiometry.

Bacterial meningitis is a major cause of sensorineural hearing loss during childhood. This study compared the efficacy of auditory brain-stem evoked response (ABER) testing with conventional conditioned orienting response (COR) testing in the early diagnosis of postmeningitic deafness in 34 infants younger than 2 years of age, with a diagnosis of Hemophilus influenzae meningitis. In most of the children (62%), results of the two tests were in agreement. The use of ABER testing appeared to be more effective than COR audiometry for the testing of infants younger than 6 months of age, for older children with perceptual handicaps, and for the identification of small children with unilateral hearing loss.