An acoustically evoked short latency negative response in profound hearing loss infants

Objective A large negative deflection with a 3–4 ms latency within the auditory brainstem response has been reported in some profound hearing loss ears under intense stimuli in adult subjects. The wave has been termed the N3 potential or acoustically evoked short latency negative response and it is assumed to be a vestibular-evoked potential. The purpose of the current study was to investigate the relationship between the vestibular-evoked myogenic potentials and the acoustically evoked short latency negative response in infants with a functionless cochlea and normal or impaired semicircular canal. Methods Seventeen 3 months old infants with profound bilateral sensorineural hearing loss had acoustically evoked short latency negative responses and vestibular-evoked myogenic potentials recorded and caloric tests performed. Results No spontaneous symptoms of vestibular dysfunction were found in the examined infants. ASNR with medium latency 3.3 ms and threshold value 80–90 dB normal hearing level was elicited from 10 ears. VEMPs were present in 12 ears. ASNRs and VEMPs were absent in two ears with normal response to caloric stimulation. No response to caloric stimulation was elicited from other two ears with normal saccular function. For the ears with absence of ASNR, four had normal VEMP and the rest were considered to have saccular afunction. Significant correlation was found between the presence of ASNRs and VEMPs. Conclusion Acoustically evoked short latency negative responses could be a valuable tool for assessing vestibular function in infants with profound sensorineural hearing loss.