Does Maternal Smoking Make a Difference in Newborn Hearing Screening with Otoacoustic Emissions?

Neonatal hearing screening by means of transient evoked otoacoustic emission (TEOAE) is widely accepted. Some studies have related how maternal smoking can be harmful for the newborn’s cochlear function. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between maternal smoking and TEOAE newborn hearing screening results. Data were retrospectively collected from healthy vaginally delivered newborns of gestational age > 37 weeks and body weight > 2.5 Kg, at the Francesc de Borja Hospital maternity ward in Gandia (Spain). Maternal smoking history was compared with the pass rate to TEOAE performed within the first 48 hrs. of life. Results: the study group included 12,871 newborns. In this group, no significant relation between maternal smoking and TEOAE pass rates was observed (p<0.853). As there were significant differences in pass rate based on gender (female better than males, p<0.0001) and feeding of newborn (breastfeeding better than formula, p<0.0001) we analyzed these subgroups separately and also found no differences related to smoking history. Conclusion: The effect of maternal smoking in newborn hearing screening with TEOAE is not significant. Further studies are needed.