Abstract：Objective To screen auditive obstacles in neonates. Methods The distortion product oto-acoustic emission (DPOAE) test was performed in 2 367 neonates. If infants failed DPOAE test, the tests were repeated up to four times for two months, and then followed by the auditory brain stem response audiometry (ABR) test. The failures in the ABR test were considered to have auditive obstacles. Results Five infants failed the DPOAE and ABR tests (single ear in two cases and two ears in three). Two cases were suspected to have moderate auditive obstacles and three to have serious ones. Conclusions The DPOAE test is a reliable, effective and convenient method for an early screening of auditive obstacles in neonates to prevent the failures from developing into subsequent alalia.
