title: Auditory-steady-state response reliability in the audiological diagnosis after neonatal hearing screening.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Conventional audiometry is the gold standard for quantifying and describing hearing loss. Alternative methods become necessary to assess subjects who are too young to respond reliably. Auditory evoked potentials constitute the most widely used method for determining hearing thresholds objectively; however, this stimulus is not frequency specific. The advent of the auditory steady-state response (ASSR) leads to more specific threshold determination. The current study describes and compares ASSR, auditory brainstem response (ABR) and conventional behavioural tone audiometry thresholds in a group of infants with various degrees of hearing loss.
  
  
  METHODS
  A comparison was made between ASSR, ABR and behavioural hearing thresholds in 35 infants detected in the neonatal hearing screening program.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mean difference scores (±SD) between ABR and high frequency ABR thresholds were 11.2 dB (±13) and 10.2 dB (±11). Pearson correlations between the ASSR and audiometry thresholds were 0.80 and 0.91 (500Hz); 0.84 and 0.82 (1000Hz); 0.85 and 0.84 (2000Hz); and 0.83 and 0.82 (4000Hz).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The ASSR technique is a valuable extension of the clinical test battery for hearing-impaired children.
authors.affiliation: Unidad de Hipoacusia Infantil, Servicio de ORL, Hospital Universitario Central de Asturias (HUCA), Oviedo, España. Electronic address: fnunezb@telefonica.net.
authors.forename: Faustino
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Núñez-Batalla
authors.affiliation: Facultad de Psicología y Logopedia, Universidad de Oviedo, Oviedo, España.
authors.forename: Sabel
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Noriega-Iglesias
authors.affiliation: Programa de Atención al Déficit Auditivo Infantil del Principado de Asturias, IATYS, Fundación Vinjoy, Oviedo, España.
authors.forename: Maite
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Guntín-García
authors.affiliation: Unidad de Hipoacusia Infantil, Servicio de ORL, Hospital Universitario Central de Asturias (HUCA), Oviedo, España.
authors.forename: Pilar
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Carro-Fernández
authors.affiliation: Servicio de ORL, Hospital Universitario Central de Asturias (HUCA), Oviedo, España.
authors.forename: José Luis
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Llorente-Pendás
mesh_terms: D001301:Audiometry, Pure-Tone; D005072:Evoked Potentials, Auditory; D016057:Evoked Potentials, Auditory, Brain Stem; D005260:Female; D006314:Hearing Loss, Conductive / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology; D006319:Hearing Loss, Sensorineural / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D015997:Neonatal Screening; D017084:Otoacoustic Emissions, Spontaneous / Q000502:physiology; D015203:Reproducibility of Results
keywords: Auditory brainstem response; Auditory steady-state response; Childhood hearing loss; Hipoacusia infantil; Hipoacusia neurosensorial; Potenciales evocados de estado estable; Potenciales evocados de tronco cerebral; Sensorineural hearing loss