OWL Genetic Hearing Loss Flashcards
High risk register revisited Peri-natal insults and infections (non-genetic hearing loss) Genetic hearing loss with other features External ear abnormalities Musculoskeletal abnormalities
What are 5 High Risk Register for Hearing Loss?
- Caregiver concern (hearing, speech, language, developmental delay)
- Family history of permanent childhood HL
- NICU > 5 days, assisted ventilation, ototoxic drugs, hyperbilirubinemia
- Prenatal infections (TORCH)
- Craniofacial anomalies
What are 5 OTHER High-Risk Register for Hearing Loss?
- Physical findings associated with HL syndrome
- Syndromes with associated HL
- Neurodegenerative disorders associated with HL (eg Charcot-Marie Tooth syndrome)
- Postnatal infections associated with HL (eg meningitisto
Describe Non-Genetic Hearing Loss: (2)
- Not all congenital hearing loss is due to genetic causes
- Not all hearing loss detected early in life is congenital
- May be acquired very early in life (even during birthing)
What are 5 Intrauterine/Neonatal Infections? (TORCH)
Toxoplasmosis
Other (syphilis)
Rubella
Cytomegalovirus (CMV)
Herpes
What is Neo-Natal?
28 first days of life
What would be 2 non-genetic Hearing Loss causes?
- Intrauterine/neonatal infections
- Intrauterine/neonatal insults
Hyperbilirubinemia
Anoxia (low oxygen) NICU stay
Ototoxic medications
What is TORCH? (2)
- Part of the high risk register
- Congenital but non-genetic cause of infant hearing loss
In utero infection (vertical transmission from mom) or
Infection in early infancy
What are micro-organisms? (2)
- Organism of microscopic size
- Usually refers to bacteria, virus or protozoa
What are parasites? (2)
- An organism that lives on a different organism while contributing nothing to the survival of the host
- Host is usually harmed
What are protozoa? (3)
1- Diverse group of single-cell eukaryotic organisms
2- Usually motile
3- Human diseases
ex:
Malaria
Dysentery
Trichomoniasis
Toxoplasmosis
What are Virus? (3)
- An infectious agent found in most life forms (humans, animals, plants, fungi, and bacteria)
- 20-100 times smaller than bacteria
- 5000 viruses have been studied (millions more)
What are the characteristics of Viruses (3) ?
- Not free-living and cannot reproduce outside of a living cell (needs a host)
- After infection, viruses use the machinery and metabolism of a host cell to replicate
- Along the way, the host cell and system may be destroyed
What are human diseases you can get from Viruses? (5)
Cold
Flu
AIDS
Rabies
Yellow fever
Polio
HPV
Coronavirus
Cancers
What are bacteria? (2)
- Most common and ancient organism on earth and are connected to the lives of all organisms
- < 1 micron (1 millionth of a meter) but are considerably larger than viruses
What is Toxoplasmosis? (3)
Congenital infection
Caused by Toxoplasma gondii-a protozoan parasite
Not harmful to healthy children and adults
How does toxoplasmosis affect newborns?
- Risk of harm to newborns and immunocompromised individuals
- Transferred to fetus transplacentally by mothers
How can you get toxoplasmosis? 3
- Cats are the hosts (cat feces)
- Cat -> Mom -> Newborn
- Contaminated fruits and vegetables
- Raw or rare meat
- Unpasteurized milk
What are three areas that can get affected by Toxoplasmosis?
Ocular
Systemic (generalized)
Central nervous system
- May lead to spontaneous abortions if infected early in pregnancy
What are physical signs from toxoplasmosis?
Enlarged spleen and liver (hepatosplenomegaly)
What are conditions a patient may develop when toxoplasmosis affects the CNS? (5)
Microcephaly
Hydrocephaly
Motor and intellectual disability
Seizures
SNHL
How does toxoplasmosis affect hearing?
- Sensorineural hearing losss
Mild to moderate
Unilateral or bilateral
Calcification of stria vascularis and spiral ligament
Other sites of auditory pathway may be involved
How can we prevent toxoplasmosis? (7)
No raw or uncooked meat
Wash fruits and vegetables
Wear gloves when gardening
Wash hands, utensils and cutting boards
Keep cats indoors
Proper handling of cat litter
Get a dog, instead of a cat
What is syphilis? (2)
- Most commonly, syphilis is a sexually transmitted disease
- Caused by a spirochete bacterium Treponema pallidum
What is congenital syphilis? (4)
- Different than adult-onset syphilis
- Transplacental transmission of Treponema pallidum
- Many CNS and skin findings
- SNHL in up to 40% affected, often delayed significantly