STIMULUS PAIRS IN 3D AUDITORY BRAINSTEM RESPONSE

THE GOAL OF THIS RESEARCH IS TO DETERMINE THE FEASIBILITY OF COMBINING THREE-CHANNEL RECORDING OF THE AUDITORY BRAINSTEM RESPONSE (ABR) WITH A STIMULUS-PAIRS TECHNIQUE SO AS TO MEASURE THE DECREMENT IN RESPONSE THAT OCCURS IN THE RELATIVE REFRACTORY PERIOD (RRP). THIS METHOD WILL PERMIT DETECTION OF ANY ABNORMALITIES THAT AFFECT THE RRP, AS THE PARAMETERS CAN BE ADJUSTED SO THAT THERE IS DECREMENT IN THE RESPONSE TO THE SECOND STIMULUS, IN NORMALS. THE THREE-CHANNEL LISSAJOUS TRAJECTORY OF THE ABR WILL BE ANALYZED WITH RESPECT TO BOTH LINEAR AND PLANAR SEGMENTS. THE USE OF STIMULUS PAIRS PROVIDES INFORMATION ABOUT THE RESPONSES TO BOTH THE FIRST AND THE SECOND STIMULUS (IN THE RRP). THIS METHODOLOGY IS LIKELY TO BE MORE SENSITIVE TO PATHOLOGICAL CHANGES IN THE AUDITORY NERVOUS SYSTEM THAN IS THE ABR, WHICH HAS HAD EXTENSIVE USE IN AUDIOLOGY AND NEUROLOGY AS AN OBJECTIVE MEASURE OF BRAINSTEM NORMALITY OR ABNORMALITY.