Elizabeth is 7 months old (31/2 months corrected). She spends her days playing with toys, kicking her legs and smiling at herself in the mirror. She also smiles at her parents and has even began to laugh.
She is about 11 1/2 pounds and is in the 10th percentile range for weight. It seems that she is taking after her mother and is not even on the growth chart for height.
At the most recent growth-and-development clinic (at McMaster), the doctor said that she is not showing any neurological deficits.
Another hearing test was completed, this time at Sick kids hospital, with similar results. She was diagnosed with "Auditory Neuropathy", meaning that her ears are working, but the sound is not being transmitted to her brain properly. As a result her brain may not be receiving the complete message or it's all jumbled. This means that she will have difficulties understanding speach. It appears that each case of auditory neuropathy is unique and treatments that have worked for some (such as hearing aids or cochlear implants) may not work for others. This disorder is not very common, and there's limited research. Elizabeth will have to go back for tests every six weeks to keep track of her development. She has began to learn sign and loves the sign for milk. Her parents will have to wait to find out what's in the future for her ears.