Comparison of brainstem auditory evoked potential wave V amplitudes and latencies obtained through click and CE-Chirp® stimuli

Abstract

Introduction: The auditory brainstem response (ABR) has become a standard proce- dure in the audiological evaluation. For decades the most widely used stimulus was the click, but recently the use of chirp stimulus has been proposed for obtain more efficient results. Aim: To compare the amplitudes and latencies of wave V of ABR obtained through click and CE-Chirp^® stimuli at different intensities. Material and method: A quantitative, not experimental, transversal and descriptive study was conducted with 17 subjects who were evaluated with ABR using click and CE-Chirp^® stimuli. Results: Wave V larger amplitudes were verified for stimulus CE- Chirp^®, in all the evaluated intensities (80, 60, 40, 30 and 20 dBnHL). Shorter latencies of wave V were obtained for CE-Chirp^® stimuli only at 80 and 60 dBnHL, while it was found that the remaining intensities showed lower latencies with click stimuli. Conclusions: There are significant differences between latencies and amplitudes of the wave V obtained with CE-Chirp^® and click stimuli. While the CE-Chirp^® stimuli provides faster results for most accurate electrophysiological threshold, click stimuli would be appropriate to conduct site of the lesion testing.