Patient Preparation, Orientation and Data Collection
Case History Review
- Age
- Referral Source
- Reason for referral
- Other pertinent health related information
- Medications
- Conditions that might affect testing
Patient instruction before testing
- You have been scheduled for an auditory brainstem response (ABR) test. this test will evaluate the function of the pathway from the ear to the brainstem by measuring brain waves produced when the ear hears sounds. The ABR is a painless procedure and does not require the use of any needles
Electrode Application
- low electrode impedances (<5000Ω)
- Six basic steps involved in electrode application
- clean the skin
- abrade the skin
- apply conductive gel or paste to the electrode (except in the case of disposable electrodes)\
- apply the electrode to the appropriate site
- secure the electrode (typically involves taping the electrode)
- collect and secure all electrode leads and plug them into the head box
Data Collection
- In the case of an infant hearing evaluation an optimal evaluation would be a full ABR wave V threshold search for clicks and low and high frequency tone bursts in both ears
- Noise is usually the biggest challenge to overcome
- Low electrode impedances will reduce biological noise, but there are other sources of electrical noise that should be minimized throughout the test session
- A comfortable patient will optimize data aquisition