Associations of childhood hearing loss and adverse childhood experiences in deaf adults

1. Amongst the deaf population, demographic factors that increase the odds of reporting adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) include: Having slight-to-moderate hearing loss, not attending a school with signing access, having a cochlear implant, and hearing loss onset at older than 5 years of age.

Evidence Rating Level:2 (Good)

Experiences of childhood trauma disproportionately affect the deaf population, at nearly double the rate of the general population. Isolation, barriers to communication, and delayed development are thought to make deaf children vulnerable to neglect and abuse. Despite this association, there is a paucity of literature examining adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) in the deaf population. Therefore, this cross-sectional study based in the USA aimed to determine demographic factors specific to the deaf community that may be associated with increased risk of ACEs before 18 years of age. There were 520 participants included, whom were recruited through social media and community-based methods and filled out a survey. The demographic factors examined included severity of hearing loss, onset of hearing loss, parent hearing status, education setting, use of cochlear implant, age of cochlear implant surgery if relevant, and signing exposure before five years old. There were 10 ACE questions and participants were categorized as having 0-1, 2+, or 4+ of the ACEs listed. Overall, the study found an association between reporting 2+ and 4+ ACEs for: Participants with slight-to-moderate hearing loss (odds ratio 5.2, 95% CI 1.8-15.0, p = 0.002 and OR 4.7, 95% CI 2.1-10.3, p <0.001 respectively), who did not attend a school with signing access (OR 2.4, 95% CI 1.4-4.1, p = 0.002 and OR 3.7, 95% CI 2.1-6.4, p < 0.001 respectively), and who receive a cochlear implant (OR 2.1, 95% CI 1.2-3.5, p = 0.005 and OR 2.6, 95% CI 1.7-4.1, p < 0.001 respectively). Those who identified as deafblind had a higher likelihood of reporting 2+ ACEs (OR 2.1, 95% CI 1.0-4.1, p = 0.040) and those with hearing loss onset older than 5 years of age had a higher likelihood of reporting 4+ ACEs (OR 2.1, 95% CI 1.1-3.9, p = 0.02). In conclusion, this study uncovered several deaf-specific demographic factors that are associated with reporting childhood ACEs.

Click to read the study in PLOS ONE

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