The objective of this study was to investigate the degree to which Auditory Steady State Response (ASSR) thresholds correlate with behavioral thresholds in two groups of adult subjects, one with normal hearing and the other with sensorineural hearing impairment. When the relationship between ASSR and behavioral thresholds were analyzed separately according to different groups of subjects, significant correlations were only found for the hearing impaired group. The mean differences between the actual and the predicted thresholds derived from linear regression analysis for that group of subjects were found to be 5 dB (SD = 4), 3 dB (SD = 3), 4 dB (SD = 3) and 4 dB (SD = 4) with correlation coefficients of 0.80, 0.88, 0.91 and 0.97 for the 500, 1000, 2000 and 4000 Hz carrier frequencies, respectively. When the relationship between ASSR and behavioral thresholds were analyzed using data from both groups of subjects, correlation coefficients were found to be higher across carrier frequencies of 500 to 4000 Hz (r ³ 0.96) with mean differences between the actual and the predicted thresholds of 6 dB (SD = 3), 4 dB (SD = 3), 4 dB (SD = 3) and 6 dB (SD = 3) for the hearing impaired group and 11dB (SD = 7), 8 dB (SD = 8), 8 dB (SD = 6) and 10 dB (SD = 7) for the normal hearing group. However, it was observed that the range of differences between the actual and the predicted thresholds were quite large reaching 34 dB for the 500 and 4000 Hz carrier frequencies. This suggests that in clinical setting, ASSR cannot predict the presence or absence of a hearing loss accurately. In general, it can be concluded that ASSR allow for an accurate prediction of behavioral thresholds within ± 10 dB in subjects with hearing impairment. However, ASSR cannot accurately predict hearing thresholds in normally hearing individuals.
Key words: auditory steady-state response threshold, behavioral threshold, adult, normal hearing, hearing impairment
Early identification of any vestibular dysfunction and balance problem in children is crucial for their general well-being.
However the identification process, could be challenging and difficult as compared to adults. We conducted a preliminary
study to review our initial experience with ocular and cervical vestibular evoked myogenic potentials (oVEMPs and
cVEMPs), video head impulse test (vHIT) and Bruininks Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency II (BOT-2) on healthy children
and also to determine the feasibility of these tests in this population. Twenty one normal healthy children (12 boys and
9 girls), aged between 6 and 15 years old (mean age, 11.15 ± 2.54 years) participated in the study. They underwent
oVEMPs and cVEMPs elicited with bone conduction stimulus via minishaker and air conduction stimulus respectively. All
six semicircular canals were assessed using the vHIT. Bilateral coordination, balance, running, speed and agility which
are the three subsets of BOT-2 gross motor assessment were conducted for balance assessment. All subjects completed the
vestibular and balance assessment except for 1 subject who did not complete the vHIT vertical component. The response
rate was 100% for oVEMPs, cVEMPs, and BOT-2, and 95.24% for vHIT. The mean latency and mean amplitude for n10
oVEMPs were 8.88 ± 0.92 and 2.71 ± 1.29, respectively. The mean latency for cVEMPs p13, and n23 were 13.4 ± 1.35
and 21.76 ± 3.71, respectively with interamplitude mean of 97.57 ± 42.69. The vHIT mean for vestibular ocular reflex
(VOR) gain were >0.85 for lateral canals and > 0.65 for vertical canals. The mean scale score for bilateral coordination,
balance, running, speed, and agility for BOT-2 were 17.52 ± 3.40, 15.14 ± 3.65 and 13.9 ± 5.46, respectively. This study
suggest that VEMPs, vHIT, and BOT-2 are feasible test for vestibular and balance assessment in children. Apart from the
tests findings, it is hoped that the described experienced and adjustment made in assessing this young population could
also be applied by other relevant professional