Why Does My Child Cover Their Ears at Everyday Sounds? A Parent’s Guide to Sound Sensitivity You walk into a public toilet. The hand dryer starts. Your child immediately puts both hands over their ears. Perhaps they run towards the door. At home, the vacuum cleaner produces the same reaction. At school it might be: the fire alarm the dinner hall children shouting or the sudden scrape of chairs across the floor. Yet something seems confusing. Your child can sometimes happily make a lot of noise themselves . So parents naturally ask: “Is there something wrong with my child's hearing?” For many young children, disliking sudden or unfamiliar loud noises is a normal developmental phase. But when ordinary everyday sounds seem much louder, uncomfortable or even painful , the term hyperacusis may be used. The reassuring point is that sound sensitivity in children is common and often improves as they grow. But understanding how to respond is important—because trying to protect a child f...
What Is the Tiny Hole in Front of My Child’s Ear? A Parent’s Guide to Preauricular Pits You may have noticed it soon after your baby was born. Or perhaps you have only just spotted it while washing their hair. A tiny, pin-sized hole sits just in front of the ear . It can look so neat that some parents initially wonder whether somebody has somehow pierced the ear. Other parents notice exactly the same tiny opening on themselves or another relative. Then comes the understandable question: “Why does my child have a little hole beside their ear?” In many children, the explanation is something called a preauricular pit , also known as a preauricular sinus . The reassuring news is that an isolated preauricular pit is usually just a small difference in how the outer ear formed before birth. Many never cause any problem at all. Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Occasionally, however, the tiny tract beneath the opening can become infected. That is when parents may suddenly n...