Meningitis and sensorineural hearing loss.

A 12 month retrospective study was conducted on 54 children discharged from the Children's Hospital, Birmingham, Alabama, with a diagnosis of generalized meningitis, a major cause of post-natal sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL). Of these high risk patients, 38 or 70% had Haemophilus influenza meningitis and fully 40% of those children tested audiometrically were determined to have SNHL. Because there would appear to be an increase in SNHL in the post meningeal population, all children with a diagnosis of Haemophilus influenza, pneumococcal, or meningococcal meningitis should have an audiological workup, preferably prior to discharge from the hospital.