Auditory steady-state responses in school-aged children: a pilot study

Abstract

BackgroundThe use of Auditory Steady-State Responses (ASSRs) for auditory screening in school-aged children, particularly in children who are difficult to test and children with disabilities, has not been explored yet. This pilot study investigated the use of ASSR for auditory screening in school-aged children.Materials and methodsA cross-sectional pilot study of 23 children aged 9 to 11 with normal-hearing thresholds and seven age-matched children with permanent moderate-to-profound bilateral hearing loss were examined. The tested carrier frequencies were 500, 1,000, 2,000, and 4,000 Hz, and the stimulus was modulated between 77 and 107 Hz. The ASSRs decreased according to the tested intensity levels of 50, 40, and 30 dB sound pressure level (SPL). Sensitivity and specificity were estimated from the responses of the children with normal hearing and those with hearing loss.ResultsFor the children with normal hearing, the 2,000-Hz frequency was detected more often in both ears and at all intensity levels compared to the other frequencies. The 500- and 2,000-Hz frequencies resulted in different response patterns in both ears. The time until response detection increased in parallel with amplitude reduction, as expected. The overall time required for the test was 15 minutes, including the time spent in volunteer preparation. The sensitivity was 97% for the three intensities, and the best specificity value was 100%, which was observed at 50 dB.DiscussionThe response analysis indicated that a screening protocol for school-aged children could include 1,000, 2,000, and 4,000 Hz and that the recording of ASSRs was highly sensitive to internal and external factors. Fifty dB SPL should be considered a cut-off criterion for screening purposes because this was the intensity level with a sensitivity of 97% and a specificity of 100%.ConclusionThe use of ASSRs might be particularly useful in school-aged children who have difficulty performing subjective hearing tests. The sensitivity and specificity data suggested that the use of ASSRs was feasible as an auditory screening tool. In order to determine a protocol for screening, future studies should include a larger sample and children with mild hearing loss.

Estimation of auditory steady-state responses based on the averaging of independent EEG epochs

“…Acquisition paradigm based on a discrete acoustic stimulation (in 37 which segments of AM-sounds of several seconds in length are presented after a given inter stimulus 38 interval), in combination with appropriated averaging methods might increase the accuracy of 39 audiological tests based on ASSRs.3 40 Introduction 41 Auditory steady-Sastate responses (ASSRs) are brain oscillations locked to the periodic 42 properties of acoustic stimuli (Picton et al 2003;John and Purcell 2008). Audiological tests based 43 on the acquisition of ASSR are useful for estimating the hearing sensitivity, mainly because multiple 44 hearing frequencies can be simultaneously assessed, and the auditory response can be objectively 45 detected using statistical tests Luts et al 2004;Valdes et al 1997; Wilding et al 46 2012;de Resende et al 2015).…”

Estimation of auditory steady-state responses based on the averaging of independent EEG epochs

“…Auditory steady-state responses (ASSRs) are brain oscillations locked to the periodic properties of acoustic stimuli [1, 2]. Audiological tests based on the acquisition of ASSR are useful for estimating the hearing sensitivity, mainly because multiple hearing frequencies can be simultaneously assessed, and the auditory response can be objectively detected using statistical tests [3–7].…”

Longitudinal Comparison of Auditory Steady-State Evoked Potentials in Preterm and Term Infants: The Maturation Process

“…9 10 11 The pediatric hearing assessment of children must be carried out differently from adults. In this way, the audiologist has to give more attention to each phase of the child maturational and development.…”

“…Thus, the first years of life are critical for child development, including the acquisition and development of language, since it is intrinsically related to the auditory nervous system maturation. 9 10 11 The pediatric hearing assessment of children must be carried out differently from adults. In this way, the audiologist has to give more attention to each phase of the child maturational and development.…”

“…The ASSR has been extensively studied in recent years, detecting objectively the electrophysiological thresholds, which are close to the auditory behavioral thresholds. 9 12 17 18 Thus, the ASSR has a greater applicability in neonatal and pediatric populations, whereas this age group may not have cognitive and/or motor conditions for reliable behavioral responses. 15 18 Through the ASSR, the audiologist can evaluate four specific frequencies in both ears simultaneously.…”