[Results of a deafness screening program for infants: a pilot project].

This article describes a screening program for hearing loss among infants. The program, designed according to ASHA recommendations, was implemented in a public health district of the province of Quebec. In the first stage of the program all infants born between April 1, 1990 and March 30, 1992 were assessed for risk factors for deafness. In the second stage, those infants considered at risk were given an audiological examination at six months of age. There were 3,944 births during the study period and of these, 8.4% of the infants had at least one risk factor for hearing impairment, the most frequent of which was a family history of hearing impairment at an early age, followed by: hyperbilirubinemia, admission to a high risk neonatal unit, consumption of ototoxic medications, anatomical malformations, perinatal infections and insufficient birthweight. Of the infants at risk, 54.2% were given the audiological examination at six months and one case of deafness was diagnosed.