Frequency-specific audiometry using steady-state responses

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the audiometric usefulness of steady-state responses to multiple simultaneous tones, amplitude-modulated at 75 to 110 Hz.

Design: Steady-state responses to multiple tones amplitude-modulated at different rates between 75 and 110 Hz and presented simultaneously were recorded at different intensities in normal adults, well babies, normal adults with simulated hearing loss, and adolescents with known hearing losses. Response thresholds were compared with behavioral thresholds.

Results: In normal adults the thresholds for steady-state responses to tones of 0.5, 1, 2, and 4 kHz were 14 +/- 11, 12 +/- 11, 11 +/- 8, and 13 +/- 11 dB, respectively, above behavioral thresholds for air-conducted stimuli, and 11 +/- 5, 14 +/- 8, 9 +/- 8, and 10 +/- 10 dB above behavioral thresholds for bone-conducted stimuli. In well babies tested in a quiet environment, the thresholds were 45 +/- 13, 29 +/- 10, 26 +/- 8, and 29 +/- 10 dB SPL. In adolescents with known hearing losses, the steady-state responses thresholds predict behavioral thresholds with correlation coefficients (r) of 0.72, 0.70, 0.76, and 0.91 at 0.5, 1, 2, and 4 kHz, respectively.

Conclusion: Steady-state responses to tone amplitude-modulated at 75 to 110 Hz can be used for frequency-specific objective audiometry. The multiple-stimulus technique allows thresholds to be estimated for eight different stimuli at the same time.