SLPPilotEar and hearing2018

The Electrically Evoked Auditory Change Complex Evoked by Temporal Gaps Using Cochlear Implants or Auditory Brainstem Implants in Children With Cochlear Nerve Deficiency.

Shuman He, Tyler C McFayden, Bahar S Shahsavarani and 4 others

PMID 28968281

WHAT IT FOUND

In five deaf children with cochlear nerve deficiency, a scalp brain response to brief silence in implant stimulation could be recorded, but it did not reliably match what children detected.

It is not yet a tool for choosing implant type.

Key findings

01A brain response to a gap in implant stimulation could be recorded from at least one ABI or CI electrode in every child.

02The shortest gaps that produced this response were similar for ABI and CI electrodes, and the study did not show one device gave better timing information.

03For some electrodes, children detected gaps behaviorally even though no reliable brain response was recorded.

STILL TO COME

How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs

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What it does not show

The study included only five children, and only S2 and S5 completed both behavioral and electrophysiological testing. Behavioral gap detection could not be completed by the other subjects because they did not understand the task. The findings do not show that the auditory change complex can reliably measure temporal resolution in children with cochlear nerve deficiency. Electrical artifact contaminated some recordings, and only five EEG electrode sites were used, so artifact removal methods were not possible. The study was not designed to compare whether the auditory brainstem implant gives better temporal information than the cochlear implant. Cochlear nerve status was not classified as aplasia or hypoplasia because MRI resolution limits diagnosis.

Declared interests

Craig A. Buchman is a member of Cochlear Corp. Surgeon's Advisory Board, and Holly F.B. Teagle is a member of a Cochlear Corp. Audiology Advisory Board. For the remaining authors, none were declared. The article is listed as supported by NIH extramural and non-U.S. government research support.

The easy way to misread this

Do not read this as evidence that the auditory change complex can guide cochlear implant versus auditory brainstem implant selection. Only S2 and S5 completed behavioral testing, some gaps were perceived without a recorded brain response, and the study was not designed to compare the devices.

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