Hearing

Since Kimmie uses sign to communicate, many people assume that she is deaf.

When Kimmie was about 18 months old the doctors had an auditory brainstem response test done to check her hearing. At that time they decided that Kimmie had a moderate to severe hearing loss. She began wearing hearing aids. She wore the hearing aids for about four years. When she was five we decided the hearing aids were no longer necessary. After the auditory brainstem response test, I took her periodically for a hearing test in a soundproof booth. Each time she was tested in the booth her hearing had improved. The last time I took her it showed only a marginal hearing loss that put her hearing in the normal range.

Kimmie uses sign because she cannot produce speech. She has had speech therapy since she was 1 year of age, but Kimmie has never been able to make sounds resembling speech. The speech therapists have said that she doesn't move enough air over her vocal chords. The geneticist said that her inability to speak was probably a neurological problem.

Kimmie has become very good at signing.

--Mom