Hearing loss is the most common communication disorder affecting about 1-7/1000 births worldwide. The most affected areas are developing countries due to extensively poor health care systems. Environmental causes contribute to 50-70% of cases, specifically meningitis in sub-Saharan Africa. The other 30-50% is attributed to genetic factors. Nonsyndromic hearing loss is the most common form of he...

The frequency and distribution of genetic mutations that cause deafness differ significantly according to ethnic group and region. Zhejiang is a province in the southeast of China, with an exceptional racial composition of the population caused by mass migration in ancient China. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the prevalence and spectrum of gap junction‑β2 (GJB2), solute ca...

Non-syndromic neurosensory autosomal recessive deafness (NSRD) is the most common form of genetic hearing loss. Previous studies defined at least 15 human NSRD loci. Recently we demonstrated that DFNB1, located on the long arm of chromosome 13, accounts for approximately 80% of cases in the Mediterranean area. Further analysis with additional markers now identifies several recombinants which na...

Hearing Loss (HL) represents high genetic heterogeneity with an incidence of almost 1 out of 500 newborns in most populations. Approximately half of the cases have a genetic basis that most of them are autosomal recessive non-syndromic (ARNSHL) with DFNB1-related defect in many worldwide populations. Given the heterogeneity of the trait together with the unique infrastructure of Iranian populat...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES The mutation of the gap junction protein beta 2 (GJB2) gene is the predominant cause of autosomal recessive non-syndromic hearing loss. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the speech perception outcome after cochlear implantation according to the presence of a GJB2 mutation. SUBJECTS AND METHODS During the period from March 2004 to February 2005, 38 patients un...

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to evaluate the vestibular system of children with unilateral sensorineural hearing loss (USNHL), investigate the etiological factors of USNHL and analyze whether a genetic predisposition exists. MATERIALS AND METHODS Thirty-three children aged less than 18 years with USNHL, who visited the ear, nose, and throat (ENT) department between January 2004 and Dec...

EDITOR—The most common sensory deficit in humans is hearing loss, aVecting 1 in 1000 children, with approximately half of the cases having a genetic cause. The majority of these genetic causes are non-syndromic, of which approximately 75% have an autosomal recessive mode of inheritance. So far, nearly 30 genes that cause non-syndromic recessive deafness (NSRD) have been located (for review see ...

In China, approximately 30,000 babies are born with hearing impairment each year. However, the molecular factors causing congenital hearing impairment in the Xiamen area of Fujian province have not been evaluated. To provide accurate genetic testing and counseling in the Xiamen area, we investigated the molecular etiology of non-syndromic deafness in a deaf population from Xiamen. Unrelated stu...