Genetic hearing loss: a study of 228 Brazilian patients

We studied 228 patients, with suspected or confirmed genetic hearing loss, in order to determine the clinical and genetic diagnoses and etiology of each case. Deafness with no associated abnormalities was found in 146 patients (64%) belonging to 112 families. Syndromic deafness was diagnosed in 82 patients (36%) belonging to 76 families. The genetic etiology was as follows: autosomal recessive inheritance in 40.8% of syndromics and non-syndromics, autosomal dominant inheritance in 13.2% and X-linked recessive in 1.3%. In 44.7% of the cases, the etiology of the hearing loss could not be determined. Monogenic causes are the most possible etiology in the latter cases. Parental consanguinity was found in 22.4% of the cases, and deafness was bilateral, profound and neurosensorial in 47.4% of the patients. An early onset of hearing loss (< 2 years of age) occurred in 46.5% of the cases. These results are similar to previous literature reports.