A Preliminary Study Characterizing Subcortical and Cortical Auditory Processing and Their Relation to Autistic Traits and Sensory Features.

This study characterizes the subcortical auditory brainstem response (speech-ABR) and cortical auditory processing (P1 and Mismatch Negativity; MMN) to speech sounds and their relationship to autistic traits and sensory features within the same group of autistic children (n = 10) matched on age and non-verbal IQ to their typically developing (TD) peers (n = 21). No speech-ABR differences were noted, but autistic individuals had larger P1 and faster MMN responses. Correlations revealed that larger P1 amplitudes and MMN responses were associated with greater autistic traits and more sensory features.

Joint Profile Characteristics of Long-Latency Transient Evoked and Distortion Otoacoustic Emissions.

Purpose: In clinical practice, otoacoustic emissions (OAEs) are interpreted as either "present" or "absent." However, OAEs have the potential to inform about etiology and severity of hearing loss if analyzed in other dimensions. A proposed method uses the nonlinear component of the distortion product OAEs together with stimulus frequency OAEs to construct a joint reflection-distortion profile.

Relationships between click auditory brainstem response and speech frequency following response with development in infants born preterm.

The speech evoked frequency following response (sFFR) is used to study relationships between neural processing and functional aspects of speech and language that are not captured by click or toneburst evoked auditory brainstem responses (ABR). The sFFR is delayed, deviant, or weak in school age children having a variety of disorders, including autism, dyslexia, reading and language disorders, in relation to their typically developing peers. Much less is known about the developmental characteristics of sFFR, especially in preterm infants, who are at risk of having language delays.

Refining Measurements of Power Absorbance in Newborns: Probe Fit and Intrasubject Variability.

Objectives: Because unresolved debris in the ear canal or middle ear of newborns may produce high false positive rates on hearing screening tests, it has been suggested that an outer/middle ear measure can be included at the time of hearing screening. A potential measure is power absorbance (absorbance), which indicates the proportion of power in a broadband acoustic stimulus that is absorbed through the outer/middle ear. Although absorbance is sensitive to outer/middle dysfunction at birth, there is large variability that limits its accuracy.

Observations of Distortion Product Otoacoustic Emission Components in Adults With Hearing Loss.

Objectives: Distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs) measured in the ear canal are composed of OAEs generated by at least two mechanisms coming from different places in the cochlea. Otoacoustic emission (OAE) models hypothesize that reduction of cochlear gain will differentially impact the components. The purpose of the current experiment was to provide preliminary data about DPOAE components in adults with hearing loss in relation to OAE models and explore whether evaluation of the relative amplitudes of generator and reflection components can enhance identification of hearing loss.

Frequency-change in DPOAE evoked by 1 s/octave sweeping primaries in newborns and adults.

Distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAE) in newborns and adults were evoked by sweeping primaries up and down in frequency at 1 s/octave. Sweeping up and down in frequency resulted in changes in the amplitude vs. frequency functions of the composite DPOAE and its two major components.

An Evidence-Based Systematic Review on the Diagnostic Accuracy of Hearing Screening Instruments for Preschool- and School-Age Children.

Purpose: The purpose of this article is to conduct an evidence-based systematic review on the accuracy of pure-tone or otoacoustic emission (OAE) screening for identifying hearing loss in preschool- and school-age children.

Method: A systematic search of the literature published between 1975 and 2013 was conducted. Articles meeting the selection criteria were critically appraised for quality.

Consensus statement: Eriksholm workshop on wideband absorbance measures of the middle ear.

The participants in the Eriksholm Workshop on Wideband Absorbance Measures of the Middle Ear developed statements for this consensus article on the final morning of the Workshop. The presentations of the first 2 days of the Workshop motivated the discussion on that day. The article is divided into three general areas: terminology; research needs; and clinical application.

Prediction of conductive hearing loss using wideband acoustic immittance.

The purpose of this article was to review the effectiveness of wideband acoustic immittance (WAI) and tympanometry in detecting conductive hearing loss (CHL). Eight studies were included that measured CHL through air-and bone-conducted thresholds in at least a portion of their participants. One study included infants, three studies included children, one study included older children and adults, and three studies included adults.

Pediatric applications of wideband acoustic immittance measures.

Wideband acoustic immittance (WAI) measures have potential capability to improve newborn hearing screening outcomes and middle ear diagnosis for infants and children. To fully capitalize on these immittance measures for pediatric hearing care, developmental and pathologic effects need to be fully understood. Published literature on wideband immittance (reflectance, absorbance, tympanometry, and acoustic reflexes) is reviewed in this article to determine pathologic effects in newborns, infants, and children relative to standard audiologic tests such as otoacoustic emissions (OAEs), standard tympanometry, air and bone conduction auditory brainstem response, and otoscopy.

Wideband acoustic immittance measures: developmental characteristics (0 to 12 months).

Rapid developmental changes of the peripheral auditory system in normal infants occur in the first year of life. Specifically, the postnatal development of the external and middle ear affects all measures of external and middle ear function including wideband acoustic immittance(WAI). This article provides an overview of WAI studies in newborns and infants from a developmental perspective.

Identification of conductive hearing loss in young infants using tympanometry and wideband reflectance.

Objective: The goal of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of tympanometry and wideband reflectance (WBR) in detecting conductive hearing loss (CHL) in young infants.

Methods: Type of hearing loss was determined using auditory brainstem response using air- and bone-conducted tone bursts in 84 ears from 70 infants (median age = 10 weeks). Of these 84 ears, 60 are included in the current analysis: 43 with normal hearing (NH) and 17 with CHL.

Hearing screening in a well-infant nursery: profile of automated ABR-fail/OAE-pass.

Objectives: The goals were to examine the prevalence of a screening outcome pattern of auditory brainstem response fail/otoacoustic emission pass (ABR-F/OAE-P) in a cohort of infants in well-infant nurseries (WINs), to profile children at risk for auditory neuropathy spectrum disorder, and to compare inpatient costs for 2 screening protocols using automated auditory brainstem response (ABR) and otoacoustic emission (OAE) screening.

Methods: A total of 10.6% (n = 2167) of 20 529 infants admitted to WINs in 2006-2009 were screened for auditory neuropathy spectrum disorder risk by using an experimental protocol (automated ABR testing first, followed by OAE testing if the automated ABR test was not passed).

Changes in transient-evoked otoacoustic emissions in the first month of life.

Objective: Current Joint Committee on Infant Hearing guidelines recommend the use of transient-evoked otoacoustic emissions (TEOAEs) as a screening tool to identify hearing loss for newborns cared for in the well-baby nursery. Newborns who do not pass the TEOAE screen before leaving the hospital are typically rescreened as outpatients by 1 mo of age, at which time, approximately 50 to 70% pass screening criteria. To better understand why many infants are referred at initial screening but pass at the rescreening, more complete knowledge of developmental differences in the TEOAE levels, noise floor, or a combination of both for infants who pass and fail birth screening is needed.

Infant air and bone conduction tone burst auditory brain stem responses for classification of hearing loss and the relationship to behavioral thresholds.

Objective: A clinical protocol for diagnosing hearing loss (HL) in infants designed to meet early intervention guidelines was used with the goals of providing normative data for (1) frequency-specific tone burst auditory brain stem response (TBABR) thresholds by air conduction (AC) and bone conduction (BC) in early infancy used to classify type and severity of HL, (2) ear-specific behavioral thresholds for these same infants by 1 yr of age, and (3) the relationship between TBABR thresholds and behavioral thresholds for this group of infants.

Design: AC- and BC-TBABRs were measured in young infants (mean age, <3 mo) under natural sleep to classify the type and severity of HL (conductive, sensorineural, or mixed). A small group of normal-hearing adults undergoing the same TBABR protocol served as a control group.

Changes in transient-evoked otoacoustic emission levels with negative tympanometric peak pressure in infants and toddlers.

Objectives: Otoacoustic emission (OAE) testing is now a standard component of the diagnostic audiology protocol for infants and toddlers and is an excellent tool for detecting moderate-to-profound cochlear hearing loss. Detection of hearing loss is especially important in infants and toddlers. Unfortunately, middle-ear dysfunction has a high incidence in this age range and can confound interpretation of OAEs.

Effects of anesthesia on DPOAE level and phase in rats.

Many studies of the auditory system are performed on animals under general anesthesia. A concern for researchers is that these agents may significantly alter the underlying neurophysiologic mechanisms being studied. The effects may very across species, and even among individuals within a species.

Test-retest reliability of wideband reflectance measures in infants under screening and diagnostic test conditions.

Objective: The main goal of this study was to examine the test-retest reliability of wideband reflectance (WBR) measures collected from infants in screening and diagnostic hearing test environments. In addition, the results of WBR testing for infants who passed and failed otoacoustic emission (OAE) screening were examined to determine whether these measures distinguished between the two groups.

Design: Repeated WBR measures were collected from two groups of infants, one group tested in an outpatient hearing screening setting and the other group in a diagnostic test setting.

Normative multifrequency tympanometry in infants and toddlers.

Multifrequency tympanometry data were measured multiple times between the ages of four weeks and two years from 33 infants/toddlers. Tympanograms were also measured from 33 adult participants. Tympanograms recorded with five probe-tone frequencies (226, 400, 630, 800, and 1000 Hz) were classified using the Vanhuyse et al model classification system (Vanhuyse et al, 1975).

Detection of hearing loss using 2f2-f1 and 2f1-f2 distortion-product otoacoustic emissions.

Although many distortion-product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs) may be measured in the ear canal in response to 2 pure tone stimuli, the majority of clinical studies have focused exclusively on the DPOAE at the frequency 2f1-f2. This study investigated another DPOAE, 2f2-f1, in an attempt to determine the following: (a) the optimal stimulus parameters for its clinical measurement and (b) its utility in differentiating between normal-hearing and hearing-impaired ears at low-to-mid frequencies ( View Article and Find Full Text PDF