Brainstem electric response audiometry in preterm infants.

In the Sophia Children's Hospital in Rotterdam 108 preterm infants were examined with Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR). Ears were categorized as 1) normal sensitivity for post-conceptional age (PCA), 2) probably-mild loss of sensitivity, or 3) a moderate to severe loss of sensitivity. All infants showed ABR peaks, so no "deaf" individuals were found. A bilaterally normal sensitivity was found in 61. A probably-mild loss was found in 22 infants and a moderate to severe loss in 21 infants. The type of loss was conductive in 31 and cochlear in 12. A moderate to severe bilateral cochlear loss was found in 2. This is in line with the literature. Of the 43 infants with a (probable) loss 18 were examined again at 3 months corrected age. Only half of the conductive losses had disappeared, the other half was exacerbated. About 2 out of 3 initially moderate to severe losses were confirmed at follow-up. The moderate to severe losses of the cochlear type were all confirmed.