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Reliability and Accuracy of Chirp Based Multiple Auditory Steady State Response (MSSR) and Auditory Brainstem
Teoh Jian Woei1, Rafidah Mazlan2, Azmi Mohd Tamil3
1Kempas Medical Center, Johor Bharu, Malaysia.
Insights
Chirp-based Multiple Auditory Steady State Response (MSSR) is a reliable and accurate hearing test for children, showing good correlation with Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR), especially at higher frequencies. MSSR tests are also quicker than ABR, making them a valuable diagnostic tool.
Area of Science:
- Audiology
- Pediatric Medicine
- Neuroscience
Background:
- Hearing loss diagnosis in children is crucial for development.
- Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR) is a standard but time-consuming test.
- Multiple Auditory Steady State Response (MSSR) offers a potential alternative.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare the reliability and accuracy of chirp-based MSSR and ABR in pediatric hearing evaluations.
- To assess the correlation between MSSR and ABR in determining hearing thresholds.
- To compare the test durations of MSSR and ABR in children.
Main Methods:
- Prospective clinical study conducted at Selayang Hospital and Hospital Canselor Tuanku Muhriz.
- 38 children aged 3-18 years underwent both ABR and MSSR tests under sedation.
- Test durations for both ABR and MSSR were recorded and compared.
Main Results:
- Frequency-specific chirp MSSR showed good correlation with ABR, particularly at higher frequencies (2000 Hz and 4000 Hz).
- MSSR demonstrated high sensitivity and specificity across tested frequencies (500 Hz to 4000 Hz).
- MSSR tests were significantly shorter than ABR tests in both normal hearing and hearing-impaired children.
Conclusions:
- Chirp-based MSSR is a reliable and accurate audiological test for children.
- MSSR shows strong correlation with ABR, especially for high-frequency hearing assessment.
- MSSR is a viable and efficient clinical tool for diagnosing pediatric hearing loss.
Objective:
The purpose of this study was to compare the reliability and accuracy of chirp-based Multiple Auditory Steady State Response (MSSR) and Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR) in children.
Methods:
The prospective clinical study was conducted at Selayang Hospital (SH) and Hospital Canselor Tuanku Muhriz (HCTM) within one year. A total of 38 children ranging from 3 to 18 years old underwent hearing evaluation using ABR tests and MSSR under sedation. The duration of both tests were then compared.
Results:
The estimated hearing threshold of frequency specific chirp MSSR showed good correlation with ABR especially in higher frequencies such as 2000 Hz and 4000Hz with the value of cronbach alpha of 0.890, 0.933, 0.970 and 0.969 on 500Hz, 1000Hz, 2000Hz and 4000Hz. The sensitivity of MSSR is 0.786, 0.75, 0.957 and 0.889 and specificity is 0.85, 0.882, 0.979 and 0.966 over 500Hz, 1000Hz, 2000Hz and 4000Hz. The duration of MSSR tests were shorter than ABR tests in normal hearing children with an average of 35.3 minutes for MSSR tests and 46.4 minutes for ABR tests. This can also be seen in children with hearing loss where the average duration for MSSR tests is 40.0 minutes and 52.0 minutes for ABR tests.
Conclusion:
MSSR showed good correlation and reliability in comparison with ABR especially on higher frequencies. Hence, MSSR is a good clinical test to diagnose children with hearing loss.
