Kaylee's Hearing Check

For those that don't know - Kaylee's left ear did not pass the quick hearing screen at the hospital. They checked on two days while we were there. They said since she was a c-section baby, it was likely that she just had retained fluid in her left ear (her right passed each time they checked). We went back to Northside's Audiology department when she was about 2.5 weeks old and again the left ear did not pass, but was a bit more responsive than at the hospital.

We went back to the audiologist today to get Kaylee's left ear checked again. She still isn't showing signs of full hearing in her left ear (right one is still fine), but came very close to passing - this is compared to that appointment 2.5 weeks ago when she didn't show much hearing ability in that ear at all. Since her left ear didn't pass the quick test again today, they hooked her up to a machine to monitor brain activity when they played different sound levels into her ear. She showed signs of hearing at 30 decibels, but not 25, which is the minimum "passing" mark (the lower the decibel level, the better the hearing). The audiologist said these results are consistent with babies who have fluid retained in their ear, many of which are other c-section babies, who weren't squeezed through the birth canal and thus typically retain more fluid than non-section babes. Having said that, she did caution that it could be hearing loss, but based on the results today it would not be complete deafness on that side, but just a loss. The audiologist is sending the results to our pediatrician, who we'll talk to late next week (not sure when; sometime after she has a chance to review today's results). If it is just still fluid in there, it should eventually clear up on its own, or the doc might insert a tube to drain it. If it isn't fluid, they will likely refer us to a hearing specialist. It sounds like worst case, she has partial hearing loss, but it appears to be minimal. We had been pretty sure she could hear, as when we shush her or talk to her more in that ear, she responds.

Here are some photos of our bionic baby. :) She was so good at the appointment today - pretty much just slept in Jamie's arms the whole time, and only cried out a little when they pulled the electrode off her forehead.

Thanks to all for your continued prayers!!