Auditory measures in clinically depressed individuals. I. Basic measures and transient otoacoustic emissions.

This is the first paper in a series of two papers addressing possible differences in auditory function between individuals with and without clinical depression. Clinical depression is a common yet serious medical condition diagnosed based on the patient's symptoms. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are widely prescribed if the symptoms are determined to be consistent with low serotonin levels. Three groups of individuals were tested: the control group consisted of subjects with no depression; the medicated group consisted of subjects with depression who were on SSRIs for at least a month: the unmedicated group consisted of subjects with depression who were unmedicated for at least a month. The results indicated no significant differences between the groups in pure-tone threshold, uncomfortable loudness levels, dynamic range of hearing, and acoustic reflex thresholds However, the unmedicated group exhibited higher amplitudes of transient otoacoustic emissions compared to the control group, especially in the right ear.