Figure 1. Process of screening and follow-up (Text Description)

This chart outlines the universal newborn hearing screening system endorsed by the Joint Committee on Infant Hearing (JCIH). Starting at the top of the figure, two parallel vertical tracks proceed down the figure.

The left-hand track contains a rectangle at the top, labeled "Newborn screening." An arrow proceeds diagonally downward to the left, pointing to the word "Pass.". This indicates that infants who pass the initial screening are removed from the process.

A succession of arrows points straight downward from the rectangle, with text at the end of each arrow, as follows:

Not pass
Confirmatory testing
Diagnosis of congenital permanent hearing loss
Interventions

A second diagonal arrow proceeds from the words "Confirmatory testing" to the word "Pass.". This indicates that infants who pass confirmatory testing are removed from the process at this point.

The left-hand track consists of a vertical line with 3 horizontal lines extending to the right, perpendicular to the original line, starting from the top, the middle, and the bottom of the line, respectively. This track lists "JCIH goals and procedures." The 3 elements of the list are stated in text at the end of each horizontal line, as follows:

• Screening performed during postpartum hospitalization for most newborns (within 1 month for births outside of hospitals); includes OAE or ABR followed by a repeated or second test for those who do not pass the first test.
• Confirmation performed within 3 mo of newborn screening; includes audiologist evaluation with OAE/ABR among other specific hearing tests.
• Interventions initiated within 6 mo of newborn screening; includes evaluation for amplification or sensory devices, surgical and medical evaluation, and communication assessment and therapy.

Key to Abbreviations: OAE = otoacoustic emission; ABR = auditory brainstem response

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