On the evidence of auditory evoked magnetic fields as an objective measure of tinnitus

The purpose of the present study was to determine the utility of auditory evoked magnetic fields as an objective measure of tinnitus. The auditory evoked magnetic fields of 14 patients with tinnitus and of 14 sex- and age-matched controls were measured by means of a 7-channel BTI neuromagnetometer. Stimuli were 1 kHz tone-bursts presented randomly. Tinnitus patients and controls were similar with respect to latencies and amplitudes of the N100m and P200m, and with respect to the locations and moments of the equivalent current dipoles. The present study could not support the notion that specific abnormalities of the auditory evoked magnetic fields are characteristic of patients with tinnitus.