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Updated: Oct 20, 2026
Infant Auditory Processing and Event-related Brain Oscillations
Published on: July 1, 2015
[A study on the reliability of evoked response audiometry in infants below one year of age; a long-term follow-up]
I Takamatsu1, N Ogahara, K Tsuchiya
1Kanagawa Children's Medical Center.
Insights
Brainstem evoked response audiometry (ERA) reliably determines auditory thresholds in infants with moderate to severe sensorineural hearing loss. This objective test supports early hearing aid fitting for better habilitation outcomes.
Area of Science:
- Audiology
- Neuroscience
- Pediatrics
Context:
- Evaluating objective audiological assessment methods for infants.
- Assessing sensorineural hearing loss in early childhood.
- Longitudinal study of infant hearing assessment.
Purpose:
- To evaluate the reliability of brainstem evoked response audiometry (ERA) in infants with moderate to severe sensorineural hearing loss.
- To compare ERA thresholds with behavioral audiometry (COR and play audiometry).
- To assess the efficacy of ERA for early habilitation through hearing aid fitting.
Summary:
- Brainstem evoked response audiometry (ERA) thresholds at 1 kHz and 4 kHz were measured in 234 infants under one year old with moderate to severe sensorineural hearing loss.
- ERA results were compared with pure tone thresholds from conditioned oriented response audiometry (COR) and play audiometry during long-term follow-up.
- Speech problems were also evaluated, and all infants received hearing aids before age one.
Impact:
- Brainstem evoked response audiometry (ERA) is a reliable and effective tool for identifying auditory thresholds in infants.
- ERA facilitates timely hearing aid fitting, crucial for early habilitation in infants with sensorineural hearing loss.
- Objective audiological assessment using ERA supports improved developmental outcomes for hearing-impaired infants.
Abstract:
The reliability of brainstem evoked response audiometry (ERA) as an objective audiometric study was evaluated in long term follow-up infants with moderate to severe sensorineural hearing loss. None of the infants had either brain damage (cerebral palsy, mental retardation) or other severe complications (genetic diseases). The thresholds of ERA at 1 kHz and 4 kHz were measured in 234 infants below one year of age, from 1983 to 1990, in our hospital. These infants were followed-up to the age when conditioned oriented response audiometry (COR) and play audiometry could be conducted. Pure tone thresholds obtained by COR and play audiometry were compared with those of ERA. In addition, speech problems in these patients were evaluated. In all of those infants, hearing aids were fitted before one year of age to achieve early habilitation. As a results, ERA was found to be a reliable and efficacious test for determining auditory thresholds, and providing hearing aids for early habilitation in one-year old infants with moderate to severe sensorineural hearing loss.
