Sensorineural hearing loss entails damage to the auditory nerve or inner ear, preventing the brain from receiving the correct signals. Some times both forms of hearing loss are present and then it is called mixed.

If an infant does not seem to response to sound, the earlier the hearing impairment is detected the better. There are a variety of test and techniques including the behavioral audiogram, visual re-enforced audiometry and conditioned play audiometry which are used by well-trained pediatric audiologists to diagnose hearing impairments.

Very young infants who are not responsive can be tested for hearing loss using an auditory-evoked potential which measures the lowest possible sound level which produces a brain wave in the child. The test can determine whether the child can perceive sound, sending signals to the brain. What it cannot determine is how the brain processes the signal.

Both types of hearing loss may be present in the child with cerebral palsy, and an examination by a well-trained pediatric audiologist can help measure the extent of hearing loss.

Depending upon the type of hearing loss, hearing aids can be very effective, even in infants, in helping the child to hear as much as possible. One downside to hearing aids is that they amplify all sounds, background noises as well conversation so that it can be confusing for children who have other issues to sort out the signals

For proper language development and normal speech a child needs to be able to hear correctly. They need the auditory cues required for normal language development. Children who suffer hearing impairments frequently have a delay in developing language skills. An thorough understanding of the scope of impairment is mandatory in being able to give the child with CP the best education possible.