characteristicts

-50% of this disorder is genetic.

-Hearing loss also goes along with other birth defects.

-Interferes with the childs speach, laguage, and communication.

-Difficult to recognize.

Signs and symptoms of hearing loss may include:
 * Muffled quality of speech and other sounds
 * Difficulty understanding words, especially against background noise or in a crowd of people
 * Frequently asking others to speak more slowly, clearly and loudly
 * Needing to turn up the volume of the television or radio
 * Withdrawal from conversations
 * Avoidance of some social settings

Factors that may damage or lead to loss of the hairs and nerve cells in your inner ear include:
 * **Aging.** Exposure to sounds over the years can damage the cells of your inner ear.
 * **Heredity.** Your genetic makeup may make you more susceptible to ear damage.
 * **Occupational noises.** Jobs where loud noise is a regular part of the working environment, such as farming, construction or factory work, can lead to damage inside your ear.
 * **Recreational noises.** Exposure to explosive noises, such as from firearms and fireworks, can cause immediate, permanent hearing loss. Other recreational activities with dangerously high noise levels include snowmobiling, motorcycling or listening to loud music. Personal music players such as MP3 players can cause lasting hearing loss if you turn the volume up high enough to mask the sound of other loud noises, such as a lawn mower.
 * **Some medications.** Drugs such as the antibiotic gentamicin and certain chemotherapy drugs can damage the inner ear. Temporary effects on your hearing — ringing in the ear (tinnitus) or hearing loss — can occur if you take very high doses of aspirin or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), antimalarial drugs or loop diuretics.
 * **Some illnesses.** Diseases or illnesses that result in high fever, such as meningitis, may damage the cochlea.