Introduction

Hearing is a complex process that orchestrates transduction of the acoustic stimulus into neural impulses by the ears, transmission of the neural impulses by the auditory nerves to the brain, and perceptual registration and cognitive elaboration of the acoustic signal by the brain as well as conscious perception of the sound. Hearing impairment(s) arising from pathology of the brain may have detrimental consequences on a child’s life if untreated; however, diagnostic and management strategies for these “central” hearing impairments in childhood are rarely implemented. These auditory deficits have been collectively termed “auditory processing disorders”, in order to incorporate in the term the interaction between peripheral and central pathways.1 A rough prevalence estimate for auditory processing disorders (APD) in childhood is 7%.2 Despite the frequency of the problem, a systematic approach to the diagnosis and rehabilitation of APD in children has only started emerging over the past 30 years, as a result of developments in basic sciences; emphasis has shifted from identification of the lesion that causes the disorder to identification of the impaired individual’s difficulties and their appropriate remediation.3