why children lose their hearing and what we can do 207
Prevention:
• Help mothers avoid using medicines
during pregnancy that can cause
deafness in children. Pregnant women
should always consult a doctor
or health worker before taking
medicine during pregnancy.
• Tell a health worker immediately
if you think a medicine is affecting
hearing.
• Do not allow untrained people to
inject antibiotics.
• Do not inject antibiotics like
gentamicin unless it is necessary
to save a life and there are no
other medicines available.
Let’s see if we can find an
antibiotic that is safe for
you and your baby.
Women’s health can damage or protect
children’s hearing
It is important that girls and women, especially pregnant women, have
enough good food and access to health care. A baby can be born with
hearing loss because:
• his mother was sick or did not eat well as a young girl,
or during her pregnancy. For example, a baby born to a mother who
did not get enough to eat can often be born early or have low birth
weight and his hearing can be damaged.
• sickness or poor nutrition caused problems during
birth. For example, if a woman has a small pelvis
from poor nutrition, her baby may get stuck
during birth. This could cause hearing loss from
brain damage.
• some infections can pass from the mother
to the baby during pregnancy and damage
the baby’s hearing. These infections include
rubella (German measles), tuberculosis,
cytomegalovirus (CMV), and syphilis.
Helping Children Who Are Deaf (2004)