Jw. Pasman et al., DIAGNOSTIC AND PREDICTIVE VALUE OF AUDITORY-EVOKED RESPONSES IN PRETERM INFANTS .2. AUDITORY-EVOKED RESPONSES, Pediatric research, 42(5), 1997, pp. 670-677
In this study, the diagnostic and predictive value of brainstem, middl
e latency, and cortical auditory evoked responses (BMC-AERs) obtained
in the neonatal period in 81 preterm infants was assessed in relation
to neurodevelopmental outcome. The pre term infants were neonatally cl
assified according to risk category and gestational age. The BMC-AERs
were analyzed with respect to detectability, latencies, and amplitudes
as well as derived latency and amplitude measures. At 5 y of age the
neurodevelopmental outcome was assessed from neurologic and neuropsych
ologic evaluations. The results showed that BMC-AER differences mainly
correlated with risk category (low risk/high risk) and to some extent
with degree of prematurity. In view of these findings the degree of p
rematurity and the effect of risk category have to be taken into accou
nt, when BMC-AERs are applied in the preterm period to predict neurode
velopmental outcome. In this study the BMC-AERs for infants with abnor
mal neurodevelopmental outcome were scarcely distinguishable from the
BMC-AERs for infants with normal neurodevelopmental outcome. Thus far,
this and previous reports have indicated that BMC-AERs in preterm inf
ants are useful in maturational studies and with infants showing sympt
oms related to lesions or dysfunction of the peripheral and/or central
auditory system. For predicting neurodevelopmental outcome in preterm
infants, BMC-AERs are of limited clinical value.