Australia's national shame: How 90 PER CENT of Aboriginal children are born with ear disease and most will end up half-deaf with brain development problems

  • Ear disease affects 90 per cent of Aboriginal children in remote communities 
  • Hearing for Learning Initiative aims to address this issue with in person support 
  • Total of $7.9 million has been committed by Government and philanthropists 

A shocking 90 per cent of Aboriginal children in remote Northern Territory communities under three years old are born with an ear disease that can lead to significant development problems.

Along with language learning issues, the disease can result in balance problems for toddlers learning to walk, impair brain development, lead to behavioural problems, and contribute to entrenched disadvantage.

A new partnership between the government and philanthropic organisations called Hearing for Learning Initiative aims to tackle this overlooked crises in the indigenous community.

A shocking 90 per cent of Aboriginal children in remote Northern Territory communities under three-years-old are born with ear disease 

A shocking 90 per cent of Aboriginal children in remote Northern Territory communities under three-years-old are born with ear disease 

The initiative, which includes establishing dozens of local Ear Health Project Officers across the Northern Territory, will be implemented by the Menzies School of Health Research and co-led by Professor Amanda Leach and Associate Professor Kelvin Kong.

'You need to process sound to stimulate the brain to develop,' Professor Amanda Leach told the Daily Mail Australia.

The ear disease, known as otitis media, can affect one or both ears.

Professor Amanda Leach and Associate Professor Kelvin Kong will lead the initiative.
rofessor Amanda Leach and Associate Professor Kelvin Kong will lead the initiative.

Professor Amanda Leach (left) and Associate Professor Kelvin Kong (right) will lead the initiative 

'Only 10 per cent of these children have bilaterally normal ears,' Professor Amanda Leach said.

'This can effect being a part of family or community and can lead to behavioural issues as the children don't have the language skills to understand and be understood.'

The Turnbull Government has committed $3 million over three years to Hearing for Learning, along with $2.4 million from the Northern Territory Government and $2.5 million from the Balnaves Foundation.

'This is an exciting new opportunity to remove the preventable blight of hearing loss from current and future generations,' said Indigenous Health Minister Ken Wyatt AM.

'Children with undiagnosed hearing loss tend to fall behind at school due to delayed speech and language development,' Minister Wyatt said.

'This can have a huge impact on their early years, future employment opportunities and their chance of a happy and successful life.' 

WHAT IS OTITIS MEDIA?

 WHAT DOES IT DO? 

The disease affects the middle ear causing pain and inflammation which leads to hearing impairment.

WHAT CAUSES IT?

A viral infection, strep throat, or allergies can cause inflammation which then affects the functioning of the ear and can lead to further problems. 

HOW MANY PEOPLE HAVE IT?

Worldwide about 11 per cent of the population are affected every year.  

PREVALENCE IN ABORIGINAL POPULATIONS? 

The prevalence of otitis media in the Aboriginal population is at least ten times greater than that of non-Aboriginal populations.

Advertisement
'This is an exciting new opportunity to remove the preventable blight of hearing loss from current and future generations,' said Indigenous Health Minister Ken Wyatt AM

'This is an exciting new opportunity to remove the preventable blight of hearing loss from current and future generations,' said Indigenous Health Minister Ken Wyatt AM

The initiative includes establishing dozens of local Ear Health Project Officers across the Northern Territory 

The initiative includes establishing dozens of local Ear Health Project Officers across the Northern Territory 

 

 

The comments below have been moderated in advance.

The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.

We are no longer accepting comments on this article.