Auditory Adaptation

Abstract

Perstimulatory auditory adaptation for pure tones can be measured either at suprathreshold levels or at threshold. The results of the former test are associated with many possible sources of error, the most important being adaptation of the control ear during median plane localization matches. It is felt that this test is too cumbersome for clinical work. Adaptation at threshold is easy to measure and excessive adaptation seems mostly to be associated with retrocochlear deafness. Moderate adaptation values can occur in any type of perception deafness. This test should belong to the routine auditory testing methods employed in clinical work.