JAKARTA - Delay in speech in children is often considered a thing that will improve over time. In fact, this condition can be an early signal of hearing loss, especially in children who have never undergone screening since birth.
ENT specialist from the National Central General Hospital Dr. Cipto Mangunkusumo (RSCM) Kencana, Fikry Hamdan Yasin, Sp.THTBKL, Subsp.K.(K), explained that congenital hearing loss often has an impact on the development of children's speech.
"Usually in children who are deaf or have ear disorders from birth, their speech development is disrupted. For example, at the age of 6-8 months they cannot babble or grunt. Or they can't say repetitive words like mama or papa," said Dr. Fikry in a live broadcast via Instagram @rscm.kencana, as quoted by ANTARA.
He said, the ability to hear has an important role in the process of language growth and development. Children learn to speak by imitating the sounds they hear. Therefore, when the hearing function is disturbed, speech development can also be hampered.
However, speech delays do not always mean that a child has hearing loss. There are a number of other factors that can affect speech ability, such as excessive exposure to screentime or inconsistent use of language at home.
Parents are advised to pay attention to various possible causes before concluding that there is a hearing problem. A medical examination is still necessary to confirm the diagnosis.
If it is proven that there is hearing loss, one form of early intervention that can be done is Auditory Verbal Therapy (AVT). This therapy is designed to help children optimize their hearing ability and develop oral language through directed stimulation.
Globally, data from the World Health Organization (WHO) shows that more than 95 million children and adolescents aged 5-19 years have untreated hearing loss and do not receive the services they need.
In fact, almost 60 percent of cases of ear and hearing disorders can actually be prevented or treated if trained health workers are available and adequate facilities and drugs are supported.
Unfortunately, around 80 percent of people with ear and hearing disorders currently have not received the proper treatment, which has the potential to affect their quality of life in the long term.
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