Comparative study of the brainstem auditory evoked responses in infants and adults

Abstract

Brainstem auditory evoked responses (BAERs) are the evoked potentials which are recorded in response to an auditory stimulus from electrodes placed on the scalp. They reflect neuronal activity in the auditory nerve pathway from cochlea of inner ear to brainstem, and are used in the diagnosis of neurological diseases leading to hearing loss. In the present work, BAER's waves are evaluated by testing the normal peak and interpeak latency (IPL) values in adults and infants, with adults age group considered in the range between 20-70 years and infants below 1 year. The BAER's peak latency and IPL values are measured and evaluated for the changes in 26 normal and 6 abnormal adults, and compared with 26 normal and 10 abnormal infants. The result shows that there is a significant difference (p<;0.05) in peak latency and IPL values of the BAERs recorded in infants and adults. The peak latency and IPL values are prolonged in infants compared to adults and also in abnormal conditions. Spectrum analysis of BEARs is carried out and found that median frequency (MF) significantly differ in the normal and abnormal adults and infants.