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A Method for Tracking the Time Evolution of Steady-State Evoked Potentials
Published on: May 25, 2019
Aided auditory steady-state responses in infants
Deidré Stroebel1, De Wet Swanepoel, Emily Groenewald
1Department of Communication Pathology, University of Pretoria, South Africa.
Insights
Auditory Steady-State Response (ASSR) testing objectively validates hearing aid effectiveness in infants. This study shows ASSR provides crucial data on hearing aid benefit months before behavioral responses are observable in infants with hearing loss.
Area of Science:
- Audiology
- Pediatric Medicine
- Biomedical Engineering
Background:
- Infants with hearing loss require timely hearing aid fitting.
- Objective measures are needed to confirm hearing aid efficacy in infants before behavioral responses are evident.
- Existing data on Auditory Steady-State Response (ASSR) for aided thresholds in infants is limited.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the utility of aided ASSR in assessing hearing aid benefit in young infants.
- To compare aided ASSR thresholds with unaided ASSR and behavioral thresholds.
- To establish the correlation between aided ASSR and behavioral thresholds in infants.
Main Methods:
- Aided and unaided ASSR thresholds were measured in six infants with hearing loss fitted with hearing aids between 3-6 months of age.
- ASSR thresholds were compared to subsequent behavioral thresholds.
- Functional gain was calculated by comparing aided and unaided ASSR measurements.
Main Results:
- Aided ASSR thresholds were obtained in 83% of frequencies where behavioral thresholds were available.
- Aided ASSR estimates were within 15 dB of behavioral thresholds in 63% of cases (r = 0.55).
- An average functional gain of 36+/-15 dB was observed using aided vs. unaided ASSR.
Conclusions:
- ASSR is a viable objective measure for validating hearing aid fittings in young infants.
- ASSR can demonstrate hearing aid benefit in infants prior to observable behavioral responses.
- This method provides crucial audiological data for early intervention in infants with hearing loss.
Abstract:
Infants with hearing loss routinely receive hearing aids several months before reliable behavioral responses to amplified sound can be observed. This necessitates objective measures to validate hearing-aid fittings. A single report has demonstrated the use of ASSRs to determine aided thresholds in children but data in young infants is still lacking. The current study explored aided ASSR compared to unaided ASSR thresholds and subsequent behavioral thresholds in a group of six young infants with hearing loss who received hearing aids between three and six months of age. Aided ASSR thresholds were obtained in 83% of frequencies where aided behavioral thresholds were obtained, with a mean threshold difference of 13+/-13 dB. The aided ASSR-based threshold estimates were within 15 dB of behavioral thresholds in 63% of cases, indicating a moderate correlation (r = 0.55). Comparing aided and unaided ASSR measurements revealed an average functional gain of 36+/-15 dB. These results indicate that ASSRs can provide the first evidence of robust hearing aid benefit in young infants several months before behavioral responses are observed.
