MB11 BERAphone® hearing screening compared to ALGO™portable in a Dutch NICU: A pilot study

ObjectiveSince 2001 all Dutch Neonatal Intensive Care Units use a highly reliable automated auditory brainstem response (AABR) newborn hearing screening device, the (ALGO™portable). A more recent AABR newborn hearing screening device, the MB11 BERAphone®, does not make use of disposable ear couplers and has a different algorithm, a possible advantage with regard to a faster response acquisition. Use of the MB11 BERAphone® is therefore potentially more cost effective and faster. This study compares test results and suitability of the MB11 BERAphone® to the ALGO™portable as reference AABR hearing screening test for newborns during neonatal intensive care admission.MethodsIn 54 NICU graduates [median GA 31 2/7 weeks, median BW 1760 g] 55 (110 ears) hearing screening test results and total test time were examined with both the MB11 BERAphone® and ALGO™portable. Test time was measured from the start of the procedure, including child preparation, until a bilateral result (pass/refer) was obtained.ResultsThe median postconceptional age of testing was 34 3/7 weeks (range 30–41 6/7). In 3 ears MB11 BERAphone® screening failed due to continuous myogenic activity. In 104/107 ears final results were congruent [87/107 (81%) pass; 17/107 (16%) refer] leaving an incongruity in 3 ears of 2 infants: MB11 BERAphone® “refer” and ALGO™portable “pass”. Diagnostic investigative audiology confirmed a 35 dB unilateral conductive hearing loss in 1 child. At 15 months of age speech and language development in the other child was normal.When using the ALGO™portable as reference test, the sensitivity of the MB11 BERAphone® is 100% (17/17), specificity 97% (87/90).The mean MB11 BERAphone® test time was slightly, but not significantly, shorter 11.4 min (SD 6.6) than with the ALGO™portable 13.9 (p < 0.08).ConclusionThe MB11 BERAphone® is a reliable and feasible hearing screening device for use with NICU graduates under NICU circumstances. It is potentially more cost effective than the ALGO™portable.