Correction Factor Evaluation and Between-System Comparison of Behavioral Threshold Predictions From Auditory...

Area of Science:

• Audiology
• Pediatric audiology
• Hearing science

Background:

• Accurate hearing threshold estimation in infants is crucial for early intervention.
• Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR) is a common objective measure used in infants.
• Corrections are applied to ABR thresholds to estimate behavioral thresholds.

Purpose of the Study:

• To validate the accuracy of ABR correction factors used in the Ontario Infant Hearing Program.
• To compare behavioral threshold estimates between different ABR systems.
• To inform equipment transition and protocols in Ontario, Canada.

Main Methods:

• Study 1: Retrospective file review comparing ABR threshold estimates to behavioral thresholds in 84 infants with hearing loss.
• Study 2: Examination of the precision of two ABR systems in estimating thresholds in 37 adult and 105 infant ears.
• Statistical analysis to determine the accuracy of ABR correction factors and differences between systems.

Main Results:

• Corrected ABR thresholds accurately predicted behavioral thresholds in infants, with an average difference of 1.77 dB.
• Accounting for ear canal acoustics reduced the average difference to 0.6 dB.
• The average difference between two ABR systems was 2.40 dB, indicating comparable threshold estimates.

Conclusions:

• The ABR correction factors used in Ontario's Infant Hearing Program reliably predict behavioral thresholds in infants.
• Threshold estimates are comparable across different ABR systems if calibration and collection parameters are similar.
• No further adjustment to correction factors is needed when using comparable ABR systems.