Auditory-pupillary responses in deaf subjects

Pupillary dilation in response to sound stimuli is well established and is generally considered to represent a startle reflex to sound. We believe that the auditory-pupillary response represents not only a simple startle reflex to sound stimuli but also represents a reaction to stimulation of other sense organs, such as otolith organs. Eight young healthy volunteers without a history of hearing and equilibrium problems and 12 subjects with bilateral deafness participated in this study. Computer pupillography was used to analyze the auditory-pupillary responses of both eyes in all subjects. We found that auditory-pupillary responses occurred even in subjects with bilateral deafness and that this response was comparable to those of normal subjects. We propose that the auditory-pupillary response also relates to vestibular function. Thus, assessing the auditory-pupillary response may be useful for evaluating the vestibulo-autonomic response in patients with peripheral disequilibrium.