Newborn hearing screening prior to hospital discharge is implemented in all states and some U.S. territories. All newborns who fail the hearing screening are encouraged to follow up to get further tests to confirm diagnosis of hearing loss as early as possible, preferably by three months of age. Loss to follow-up of hearing screening is defined as a newborn who fails the initial hearing test before hospital discharge but does not follow up with further hearing tests to confirm diagnosis of hearing loss. Defining high risk populations of loss to follow-up is necessary not only to improve the rate of loss to follow-up, but also to enhance the capacity for early confirmed diagnosis and ease of access to care for patients with hearing loss in the state.
Objective
The objective of this study was to explore who were at high risk of loss to follow-up among newborns who failed initial hearing screening tests prior to hospital discharge in Louisiana between 2007 and 2011.