METHODS: Seventeen healthy children (6 boys, 11 girls) aged from 5 to 9 years (mean = 6.8 ± 3.3 years) were tested in two sessions separated by a 3-month period. The stimulus used was a 40-ms syllable /da/ presented at 30 dB sensation level.
RESULTS: As revealed by pair t-test and intra-class correlation (ICC) analyses, peak latencies, peak amplitudes and composite onset measures of speech-ABR were found to be highly replicable. Compared to other parameters, higher ICC values were noted for peak latencies of speech-ABR.
CONCLUSION: The present study was the first to report the test-retest reliability of speech-ABR recorded at low stimulation levels in healthy children. Due to its good stability, it can be used as an objective indicator for assessing the effectiveness of auditory rehabilitation in hearing-impaired children in future studies.
CASE REPORT: The patient presented with upper respiratory tract infection, fever, seizures and abdominal pain. An initial diagnosis of encephalitis was made. In view of the unexplained abdominal pain with other clinical findings such as posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome by CT brain, temporary blindness as well as hyponatraemia, acute intermittent porphyria was suspected. Urine delta aminolaevulinic acid (δ-ALA) and porphobilinogen were elevated confirming the diagnosis of AIP. Genetic studies were done for this patient. The patient had a complete resolution of her symptoms with carbohydrate loading and high caloric diet.
CONCLUSION: Although rare, AIP should be considered as a cause of hyponatraemia in a patient who presents with signs and/or symptoms that are characteristic of this disease.