[The functional state of the auditory analyzer in prematurely born infants (after 29 weeks of gestation) at 6 months of life]

The objective of the present study was to evaluate the functional state of the auditory analyzer in infants born prematurely (after 29 weeks of gestation) and examined at 6 months of life. The evoked otoacoustic emission (EOAE) techniques were used for the purpose. Testing with the help of two different modes of EOAE yielded virtually identical results which confirms the possibility to apply both delayed EOAE (dEOAE) and distortion-product frequency OAE (dpOAE) for the assessment of the auditory function. It is concluded that the degree of cochlear development in prematurely born infants (after 29 weeks of gestation) examined by the dpOAE technique at 6 months of life is significantly different from that in children born between the gestation age of 33 and 37 weeks.