The earliest possible diagnostic evaluation of bilateral sensorineural hearing impairment among infants and children is of the utmost importance for the future well-being of these patients. In this article the otologic significance of the pediatric medical history and physical examination is demonstrated based on 127 case histories of bilateral sensorineural hearing loss seen during the period 1980 to 1982.Along with neonatal viral screening processes, polytomography is shown to be the most important laboratory procedure for diagnostic evaluation.