Peripheral auditory asymmetry in infantile autism

Difficulty in filtering relevant auditory information in background noise i s one of the features of autism. Auditory filtering processes can be invest igated at the peripheral level as they are hypothesized to involve active c ochlear mechanisms which are regulated by the efferent activity of the medi al olivocochlear (MOC) system. The aim of the present work was therefore to assess these peripheral auditory processes in 22 children and adolescents with autism compared with age- and gender-matched normal controls. Active c ochlear mechanisms were evaluated with transiently evoked otoacoustic emiss ions (TEOAEs) and MOC system efficiency was assessed via TEOAEs which are d ecreased when stimulating the contralateral ear with noise. The MOC system evaluation was performed on 18 of the 22 children. In both studies, results were analysed according to age (from 4 to 10 years and from 11 to 20 years ). The main result concerns the asymmetry of the efferent system which diff ers in individuals with autism. Several neural processes might be hypothesi zed as involved in the results obtained as the MOC system which originates in the brainstem received regulating controls from upper brain structures i ncluding auditory cortex. Lateralization abnormalities at the auditory peri phery may reflect indirectly a problem at a higher level of auditory proces sing. A second important result shows a decrease in TEOAE amplitude with ag e, in patients, that may correspond to a decrease in hearing sensitivity.