Effect of Stimulus and Number of Sweeps on the Neonate Auditory Brainstem Response

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to compare auditory brain-stem responses (ABRs) to chirp and click stimuli in neonates at a low level typically used in newborn hearing screening. It was hypothesized that ABR wave V amplitudes would be larger and would be obtained with fewer number of stimulus presentations with chirps. Design: Twenty-three neonates participated. ABRs were obtained to CE-Chirp and click stimuli presented at 30 dB nHL with sweeps increasing exponentially in number (i.e., 116, 232, 464, 928, and 1856). Results: ABRs to the CE-Chirps appeared before and with greater propensity at lower sweep numbers compared to clicks. All neonates had ABRs to CE-Chirps at 464 sweeps compared to 1856 sweeps with the click stimulus. ABRs to CE-Chirps evidenced significantly larger Wave V amplitudes and significantly longer wave V latencies versus clicks. Conclusions: Evoking ABRs in neonates to chirps could significantly improve response amplitudes and reduce test time.