USE OF QUANTITATIVE MEASURES OF AUDITORY BRAIN-STEM RESPONSE PEAK AMPLITUDE AND RESIDUAL BACKGROUND-NOISE IN THE DECISION TO STOP AVERAGING

An objective quantitative approach to the decision of when to stop ave raging sweeps in auditory brain-stem response (ABR) testing is present ed. This decision is based on (1) the knowledge of the amplitude distr ibutions of wave V in the ABRs of normal hearing individuals for varyi ng stimulus levels, (2) calculated estimates of the residual backgroun d noise in the average, and (3) use of a quantitative statistical dete ctor of an evoked potential. Several reasons for terminating an averag e are presented along with a specific protocol for each of the reasons . These protocols provide a general but consistent framework to addres s the issue of when to stop averaging and should improve the efficienc y of ABR testing. Furthermore, it is quite possible to automate the pr ocedure and the decision process. (C) 1996 Acoustical Society of Ameri ca.