Unilateral sensorineural hearing loss (USNHL) in children have traditionally been underappreciated, so we reviewed the recent researches about USNHL in children to understand their effect on development and the underlying pathophysiologic mechanisms.Early diagnosis and treatment of USNHL have a positive effect on verbal cognitive, linguistic, communicative, and socio-emotional development, as demonstrated by neurophysiological studies.And the audiological management of hearing loss should be placed within a comprehensive rehabilitative approach.Among the treatment modalities with differing effects on the quality of binaural hearing, cochlear implants are now used increasingly in children with severe-to-profound USNHL.But the long-term effect and indication selection still need further study.