Maternal knowledge on infant hearing loss and acceptability of hearing aids as an intervention at a Referral Hospital in southwestern Uganda

Abstract

Objective: Infant hearing screening enables early detection and management of hearing loss (HL) so that speech and language development delays are minimized. Parents play a critical role in successful screening and management of Infant Hearing loss (IHL) but there is limited data from resource limited settings on parental knowledge about HL and acceptability of IHL interventions. This study was aimed at exploring the maternal knowledge on the various causes of IHL and their acceptability of hearing aids as an intervention for IHL. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted at a referral hospital in southwestern Uganda. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to interview postpartum mothers to assess their knowledge on causes of IHL and acceptability of a hearing aid if prescribed. Logistic regression was used to calculate odds ratio (OR) for the factors associated with hearing aid refusal. Results: 401 mothers with a mean age of 25 years (Standard Deviation = 5.6 years) were recruited. Half of the mothers correctly identified at least five causes of IHL. The most well-known causes were measles (63.3%) and a positive family history of HL (61.6%). 60% of mothers held at least one superstitious belief as a cause of IHL. Majority of mothers (86%) would accept a hearing aid as an IHL intervention. Mothers with a positive family history of HL (OR = 0.42, p = 0.04), in middle or higher socioeconomic class (OR = 0.45, p = 0.01) and those with more than 3 antenatal visits in their recent pregnancy (OR = 0.44, p = 0.01) were less likely to refuse a hearing aid while mothers that were either widowed or separated from their spouses (OR = 15.64, p = 0.01) were more likely to refuse a hearing aid. Conclusion: Although mothers had limited knowledge on some causes of IHL, there was a high acceptability of hearing aids as an intervention for IHL. Marital status, family history of hearing loss, socioeconomic status and antenatal care attendance are factors that could be used to identify mothers that might accept or refuse a hearing aid for their infant. There is need to increase awareness about causes of hearing loss to improve knowledge as well as dispel any non-biological beliefs held by communities.