As infants grow, they reach specific milestones that indicate their growth is on track. Awareness of these milestones allows parents to detect potential hearing problems early and seek timely intervention.
Below is an overview of speech development for parents to monitor. Individual children develop at their own rate, but there are some general patterns to look out for.
- By 1 to 3 months, babies typically cry and coo. A lack of response to loud sounds or voices might indicate a hearing issue.
- Between 4 to 6 months, they gurgle, squeal, and laugh. If they do not react to sounds or begin to make these vocalizations, it could be a sign of hearing loss.
- From 6 to 9 months, they often babble and imitate speech sounds. Parents should be alert if their child shows a lack of babbling or fails to imitate speech sounds, as this may indicate a hearing issue.
- At around 12 months, most children start speaking their first words. If a child has not spoken their first words or shows little reaction to spoken language, hearing loss should be considered.
- By 18 months to 2 years, they can use approximately 50 words and combine them into short phrases. A limited vocabulary (fewer than 10–15 words) or difficulty forming phrases may indicate hearing issues.
Babies must hear sounds and speech to learn how to produce them. Parents who monitor these milestones can quickly recognise delays and consult a healthcare professional. Early identification of hearing loss and speech delays leads to significantly better rehabilitation outcomes.
While hearing screening for newborns is standard in many urban medical centres, children born in the rural or underserved areas may not have access to these tests. As a result, some cases of hearing loss may go undetected until developmental delays become evident.
Once delayed speech development is confirmed, the child is referred for assessment to specialists in related fields. The underlying causes could stem from brain-related issues, hearing loss or oral cavity abnormalities.
