Investigation of electrical responses recorded from the fenestra cochleae in cats

Abstract

Electrical responses of the fenestra cochleae to stimulation by clicks of different intensity, polarity, and frequency, were studied in anesthetized cats. The absolute values of amplitude and latent period of the neural component of the response reflect the physiological state of the auditory nerve. Besides ordinary potentials characterized by peaks N1 and N2, specific responses were observed when clicks with an intensity of 85 dB or "rarefaction" clicks were used. Dependence of the amplitude of these responses on the intensity of acoustic stimuli of different polarity was investigated during a change in the rhythm of the stimulation; the effect of different rhythms of stimulation on the gradient of the curve reflecting this relationship was examined. The possible mechanisms of the effect of stimulus frequency are discussed.