Effects of age and sex on auditory brainstem response

We examined amplitude and latency of the auditory brainstem response (ABR) waveform as functions of chronological age in 182 male and 137 female subjects. Hearing sensitivity was within normal limits in 98 subjects. The remaining 221 subjects had varying degrees of sensorineural hearing loss. Age had a slight effect on both latency and amplitude of wave V. In subjects with normal hearing, latency increased about 0.2 ms over the age range from 25 to 55 years. In the same group, wave V amplitude decreased about 10%. In subjects with sensorineural hearing loss, the latency increase was smaller, but the amplitude decrease was equivalent. Sex also affected the ABR. In both normal and hearing-impaired subjects, female subjects showed consistently shorter latency and larger amplitude at all age levels. Wave V latency was about 0.2 ms shorter and wave V amplitude was about 25% larger in female subjects.