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Updated: Jul 13, 2026
Infant Auditory Processing and Event-related Brain Oscillations
Published on: July 1, 2015
Auditory brainstem response in premature and full-term children
Pricila Sleifer1, Sady Selaimen da Costa, Pedro Luiz Cóser
1Hospital de Clinicas de Porto Alegre, Department of Othorhinolaringology, Av. Lavras 584 apto 302, 90000000 Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. pricilasleifer@uol.com.br
Insights
Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR) testing shows significant differences in auditory system maturation between premature and full-term infants up to 12 months. Gestational age is crucial for interpreting ABR in premature infants under 20 months.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Pediatrics
- Audiology
Background:
- The auditory system undergoes significant development post-birth.
- Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR) is a key neurophysiological tool to assess auditory pathway maturation.
- Premature infants may exhibit altered auditory development compared to full-term infants.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare auditory pathway maturation between premature and full-term infants using ABR.
- To analyze absolute latencies of specific ABR peaks (I, III, V) and interpeak intervals.
- To investigate the influence of gestational age on ABR parameters in premature infants.
Main Methods:
- Prospective, comparative cohort study design.
- Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR) measurements in premature and full-term children at 4, 12, and 20 months of age.
- Exclusion of participants with pre-existing hearing impairments through otorhinolaryngologic and audiologic evaluations.
Main Results:
- Statistically significant differences in absolute latencies and interpeak intervals (I-III, I-IV, III-V) were observed between premature and full-term groups at 4 and 12 months.
- At 20 months, only absolute latency of peak I showed no significant difference.
- A strong inverse correlation was found between gestational age and absolute peak latencies/interpeak intervals.
Conclusions:
- Auditory system maturation, assessed by ABR, follows distinct trajectories in premature versus full-term infants.
- Gestational age is a critical factor to consider when interpreting ABR results in premature infants, particularly before 20 months of age.
- These findings highlight the importance of age-appropriate normative data for ABR in preterm populations.
Objectives:
To compare the absolute latencies of peaks I, III and V and interpeak intervals of premature and full-term children.
Methods:
Prospective, comparative cohort study. Study subjects were premature and full-term children with auditory brainstem response (ABR) measured at ages 4, 12 and 20 months. The children had previously undergone otorhinolaryngolic and audiologic evaluations to exclude those with altered hearing.
Results:
One hundred and twenty-four children were included in the study (73 premature). No differences were found between children of different sexes nor between the right and left ears of the individual children, so the statistical unit sed for the study was the ear. Using the t-test for independent samples, the absolute latencies of peaks I, III and IV and the interpeak intervals I-III, I-IV and III-V presented statistically significant differences between the groups at ages 4 and 12 months. At 20 months, only peak I failed to show a difference in absolute latency. Strong inverse correlation was found (Pearson's coefficient) between gestational age and absolute peak latency, as well as for interpeak intervals.
Conclusions:
Maturation of the auditory system, as measured by ABR, occurs differently between premature and full-term children, suggesting that gestational age be taken into consideration when using ABR in premature children younger than 20 months old.
