음향반사역치의 주파수 특이성을 고려한 정상역치의 규준

Normative Data for Frequency Specificity of Acoustic Reflex Thresholds

Purpose: Although acoustic reflex thresholds (ART) have widely used to screen and diagnose auditory lesions, they are confined only for measurements in low probe tone. The present study provides normative adults data based on various frequencies of both probe tone and stimuli, and thus extends to discuss any possible clinical application as frequency specificity. Methods: A total of 104 young listeners with normal hearing (53 female and 51 male) participated. After completing hearing screening tests, they performed the ART measurement in twelve conditions consisted of 3 probe tones (e.g., 226, 678, 1,000 Hz) and 4 stimulus frequencies (e.g., 500, 1,000, 2,000, 4,000 Hz). Individual’s thresholds were obtained at each condition and were statistically compared. Results: All data were recorded within the normal range proposed in the classic ART measurement. Interestingly, thresholds conducted at the probe tone of 678 Hz were slightly higher than those of the other probe tones regardless of a kind of the stimulus frequencies. Also, all probe tones had the highest ART at 4,000 Hz. Conclusion: We obtained the differentiated ART normalize data depending on frequency specificity. In the following study, patients with various pathologies should be applied using same probe tones and their data could be compared in terms of sensitivity and specificity.