title: Changes in brainstem auditory evoked potentials among North Indian females with Type 2 diabetes mellitus.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Diabetes mellitus is a complex metabolic disorder whose detrimental effects on various organ systems, including the nervous system are well known.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  This study was conducted to determine the changes in the brainstem auditory evoked potentials (BAEP) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this case-control study, 116 females with type 2 diabetes and 100 age matched, healthy female volunteers were selected. The brainstem auditory evoked potentials (BAEP) were recorded with RMS EMG EP Marc-II Channel machine. The measures included latencies of waves I, II, III, IV, V and Interpeak latencies (IPL) I-III, III-V and I-V separately for both ears. Data was analysed statistically with SPSS software v13.0.
  
  
  RESULTS
  It was found that IPL I-III was significantly delayed (P = 0.028) only in the right ear, while the latency of wave V and IPL I-V showed a significant delay bilaterally (P values for right ear being 0.021 and 0.0381 respectively while those for left ear being 0.028 and 0.016 respectively), in diabetic females. However, no significant difference (P > 0.05) was found between diabetic and control subjects as regards to the latencies of waves I, II, III, IV and IPL III-V bilaterally and IPL I-III unilaterally in the left ear. Also, none of the BAEP latencies were significantly correlated with either the duration of disease or with fasting blood glucose levels in diabetics.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Therefore, it could be concluded that diabetes patients have an early involvement of central auditory pathway, which can be detected quite accurately with the help of auditory evoked potential studies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, Government Medical College, Punjab, India.
authors.forename: Pooja
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Baweja
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, Gian Sagar Medical College, Ramnagar, Punjab, India.
authors.forename: Sharat
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gupta
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, Government Medical College, Punjab, India.
authors.forename: Shallu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mittal
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, Government Medical College, Punjab, India.
authors.forename: Avnish
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kumar
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, Government Medical College, Punjab, India.
authors.forename: Kamal Dev
authors.initials: KD
authors.lastname: Singh
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Government Medical College, Patiala, Punjab, India.
authors.forename: Raghuvansh
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sharma
keywords: Auditory evoked potentials; brainstem dysfunction; diabetes mellitus; interpeak latency; sensorineural hearing loss