Abstract
Binaural interaction was examined by recording human auditory brainstem responses to clicks from scalp electrodes. Deviations of binaurally evoked responses from the sum of monaurally evoked potentials were observed during waves IV through VI. Amplitude and latency of the interactions depended on click polarity: condensation clicks produced interactions of larger magnitude and longer latency than did rarefaction clicks. Latency differences cannot be accounted for by small latency shifts of the components of monaurally or binaurally evoked potentials resulting from changes in click polarity. Binaural interaction amplitude decreased as click intensity decreased and interaural delay increased. Attenuation of binaural interaction with interaural time differences was maximal at an interaural delay of 900 microseconds. Latency of interaction was prolonged in one subject with low- and high-frequency hearing loss; latency of binaural interaction in subjects with only high-frequency hearing loss was normal. These results suggest that binaural interaction in these potentials reflects binaural processing of low-frequency acoustic stimulation.
Highlights
Binaural interaction was examined by rec ording human auditory bralnstem res ponses to clicks from s calp electrodes
Auditory brainstem responses (ABRs) are far-field reflections of activity originating in brainstem portions of the auditory pathway
We identified the binaural interaction components on the basis of two criteria: (1) the latency of binaural interaction was assumed to stay constant relative to the latency of the IV-V complex evoked by the trail
Summary
Eight subjects had normal pure tone audiograms, two had high-frequency bearing loss, and one had both a high· and low-frequency hearing loss with normal thresholds in the midfrequency range. Clicks were presented at intervals of 39 ms and at an intensity of 70 dB sensation level (SL) determined for each normal subject. This SL differed by less than 10 dB across normal-hearing subjects. The two subjects with high-frequency hearing loss had thresholds 8 to 10 dB higher than normal subjects. Clicks were presented at 70 dB normal hearing level for these two subjects. Thresholds for the subject with both high· and low-frequency hearing loss were within the normal range. The responses to 2,000 click pre· sentations were averaged for each of three conditions: right monaural, left monaural, 572 Arch Neurol-Vol 38, Sept 1981
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