www.deafblindexplorers.org |

There are a countless number of reasons a child can be born deaf. The most common reasons are from an infection, a chromosomal anomaly and premature birth. Sometimes this trait can also be passed through generations of families.

Syphillis is the only sexually transmitted disease that a pregnant woman is checked for twice during her pregnancy. It is known that syphilis can cause detrimental birth defects in an unborn child and this disease is very easy to eradicate. Children born to mothers who are infected with syphilis may be deaf and/or blind.

Premature infants can suffer from a myriad of illnesses and disorders due to their premature birth. The body systems are not fully formed and are not ready to function on their own when a baby is born too early. This can lead to deafness as well as problems in many other systems in a baby.

Children that are born and appear to be healthy can be deaf. It can be a hidden genetic trait in either of the parents that rears its ugly head in a generation. Learning to live with a child who is deaf will allow the child to grow up in an loving environment that is “normal” to him or her.