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Background: In recent years, neonatal hearing screening (NHS) has gained rapid traction in both developed and developing nations. However, the efficacy of these efforts depends on comprehensive standardization across all screening facets. This study aimed to assess the status and quality of NHS by investigating the knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and practices of hearing screening practitioners regarding NHS. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted, and an online questionnaire based on the knowledge-attitude/belief (A/B)-practice model was distributed to all NHS practitioners in Luzhou, western China. Valid questionnaires were examined and uniformly graded. Results: A total of 63 valid questionnaires were collected. The practitioners were mainly female (96.83%), with nursing backgrounds (63.49%), and undergraduate degrees (66.67%). Most had ≤5 years of experience (74.60%) and had junior/intermediate titles (93.65%). The NHS within the Luzhou area started in 2006 with provincial institutions, expanding to 42 institutions by 2022. Statistically significant correlations were observed between the A/B score and the conducting years of each NHS institution (p <.05) as well as between the Knowledge (K) and Practice (P) scores (p <.01). No significant correlation was found between the K score, P score, A/B score, and working years of practitioners (p >.05), or in the total score of NHS institutions at different levels or in different counties by one-way ANOVA (p >.05). Conclusions: It has been 17 years since the first medical institution in Luzhou launched NHS, and the overall performance of practitioners from different institutions has been consistent in terms of their knowledge, attitudes, or level of practice. However, there is room for further improvement in both the professional development of individuals and aspects related to work, such as health education and long-term follow-up. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: It is difficult to detect acute low-tone sensorineural hearing loss (ALHL) because of only low-frequency hearing loss and atypical early symptoms. The etiology of ALHL is still elusive, and psychosomatic factors influence deafness and tinnitus. Therefore, this study aimed to clarify the correlation between psychosomatic factors and the incidence of ALHL to facilitate the prevention of ALHL. Methods: Patients with stuffy ears and tinnitus who were admitted to the Outpatient Clinic of the Affiliated Hospital of Southwestern Medical University (Luzhou, China) from July 2020 to May 2023 were identified in this retrospective study. The general data, hearing screening form, the Life Event Scale, and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index scale were employed to assess patients' hearing levels and stimuli of psychosomatic symptoms. Finally, the correlation among the stimuli of life events, sleep quality, and ALHL was statistically analyzed. Results: A total of 97 ALHL patients and 97 healthy participants were enrolled in the case group and control group, respectively. The two groups had no significant differences in general information (all p > 0.05). The amount of negative life event stimuli was significantly larger in ALHL patients than in the normal population (p = 0.000). Patients with ALHL had significantly poorer sleep quality than the healthy population (p = 0.000). There was a positive correlation between sleep quality and ALHL severity (250 Hz: r = 0.336, p = 0.001; 500 Hz: r = 0.299, p = 0.003), and a positive correlation between the stimuli of life events and sleep quality (r = 0.535, p = 0.000). Discussion: Sleep quality was found to be closely associated with the degree of hearing loss in ALHL patients, and there was also a strong correlation between sleep quality and the stimuli of life events. Therefore, psychosomatic factors may play an important role in the occurrence of ALHL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]