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Causes - Deafblindness

There are many possible causes of deafblindness. The condition can either be present at birth or develop later in life.

Deafblindness from birth

Deafblindness from birth is known as congenital deafblindness.

It can be caused by:

Deafblindness later in life

In most cases, deafblindness develops later in life. This is known as acquired deafblindness.

A person with acquired deafblindness may be born without a hearing or sight problem and then later loses part or all of both senses.

Alternatively, someone may be born with either a hearing or vision problem, and then later loses part or all of the other sense.

Problems that can contribute to acquired deafblindness include:

Page last reviewed: 25 May 2022
Next review due: 25 May 2025