Spectral differences in the ABRs of old and young subjects.

The purpose of the present study was to analyze and compare the amplitude spectra of ABRs recorded from 40 elderly and 40 young subjects in order to determine if there are any age related differences. A spectral analysis was performed on each subject's ABR. It was found that the ABRs recorded from older subjects have a significantly greater amount of low frequency spectral energy than ABRs recorded from young subjects. This difference was attributed to the greater amount of low frequency background noise found in the ABRs of older subjects. Modification of standard recording procedures should be considered when ABRs are recorded from older subjects.