Jennifer Matthews: Three-year-old Lindsay was born deaf. Her diagnosis came at 11 months.
Nicole Rogers: We had had some concerns that there might be some hearing loss. Never did we dream that it was profound hearing loss.
Jennifer Matthews: Getting that diagnosis was painstaking.
Nicole Rogers: It was still very traumatic. I mean every time you poked her with a needle, she cried and cried, and sedating her to put her to sleep is not a fun process to go to.
Jennifer Matthews: Now, a gene chip could hold the key to a better test for hearing loss in kids.
John Greinwald: With this deafness gene chip, we can actually look at almost 30,000 base pairs of DNA that are focused at the genes that are most likely to cause hearing loss in this young under two years of age population that we're looking at.
Jennifer Matthews: Dr. John Greinwald, at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center says, a computer analysis of the gene chip data highlights mutations in the genes linked to hearing loss. The test is quick, non-invasive and may even explain what caused the hearing loss.
With a hearing implant and targeted teaching, Lindsay's speech is improving.
Nicole Rogers: Our expectations are that by the time she is of kindergarten or first grade age, that she will be caught up to her hearing peers.
Jennifer Matthews: And playing games just like all her friends. This is Jennifer Matthews reporting.
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