Automated detection of auditory response: applying sequential detection strategies with constant significance level to magnitude-squared coherence

Automated detection of auditory response: non-detection stopping criterion and repeatability studies for multichannel EEG

An Auditory Steady-State Response (ASSR) is a valuable tool for determining auditory thresholds in individuals who are either unable or unwilling to cooperate with conventional behavioral testing methods. This study proposes a sequential test technique for automatic detection of ASSRs, incorporating a non-detection stopping criterion. The electrophysiological thresholds of a normal hearing volunteer were established using data collected from multichannel EEG signals. The detection probabilities and critical values were obtained via Monte Carlo simulations. Remarkably, application of the non-detection stopping criterion resulted in a 60% reduction in exam time in the absence of a response. These findings clearly demonstrate the significant potential of the sequential test in enhancing the performance of automatic audiometry.

Automatic audiometry using auditory steady-state response and sequential test strategy applied to volunteers with normal hearing

PURPOSE

In the present study, a new procedure to perform automatic audiometry using multifrequency Auditory Steady-State Response (ASSR) is proposed.

METHODS

The automatic audiometry procedure consists of detecting the presence of multifrequency ASSR in real-time using the sequential test strategy and by adjusting the stimulus intensity independently. The ASSR audiometric thresholds of 18 adult volunteers with normal hearing were determined by automatically (four simultaneous frequencies per ear) at modulation frequencies in the 80 Hz range. The exam time and the difference between ASSR thresholds and pure-tone behavioural hearing thresholds were estimated as performance measures.

RESULTS

The results showed that automatic audiometry can reduce the number of intensity levels used to obtain the ASSR threshold by up to 58% when compared to audiometry without using the techniques applied in automatic audiometry. In addition, the average of the difference between ASSR thresholds and Pure-Tone Behavioural Hearing thresholds was around 19 dB, which is similar to the results reported in similar studies.

CONCLUSIONS

The audiometric procedure proposed in this study is fully automatic, i.e., does not require any human supervision throughout the exam, and is able to significantly reduce the conventional exam time.