Frequency of Hearing Loss in Children with Adenoid Hypertrophy

Objective: To determine the frequency of hearing loss in children with adenoid hypertrophy.Study Design: Descriptive, cross sectional study.Place and Duration of Study: This study was conducted at the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, Lahore from August 2, 2024, and February 1, 2025.Methods: Total 95 patients with adenoid hypertrophy who are between the ages of 1 to 15 years were included, regardless of gender. cleft palate, bleeding disorders, sinonasal polyposis, choanal atresia, a significant deviated nasal septum, tumors of the nose and nasopharynx, ototoxic medication use, acoustic neurinoma, middle ear diseases, abnormal tympanometric curves, or barotrauma in their anamnesis were not included. A calibrated digital audiometer, the ALPS AD 2100, was used for the audiometric testing, which was conducted in a noise-free office setting. The hearing threshold for each ear was assessed between 250 and 8 kHz, and a threshold of more than 35 dB was considered to be suggestive of hearing loss.Results: The mean age in this study was 8.71 ± 2.79 years, with a range of 1 to 15 years. 51 patients, or 53.68% of the total, were between the ages of 9 and 15. With a male to female ratio of 1.7:1, 60 (63.16%) of the 95 patientswere men and 35 (30.84%) were women. In our study, the average length of illness was 6.47 ± 1.74 months. The average adenoid size was 2.67 ± 1.14 cm. 45 patients (47.37%) in our study had hearing loss in children withadenoid hypertrophy.Conclusion: The study's findings demonstrate the high frequency and wide range of hearing loss in kids with hypertrophic adenoids, with mild conductive hearing loss being particularly common.