Continuous positive airway pressure treatment may negatively affect auditory maturation in preterm infants.

AIM: Nasal continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) devices generate loud noise, which might harm auditory function and maturation. The function of auditory pathways can be examined by using brainstem auditory evoked potential (BAEP) and brainstem audiometry (BA) recordings. Our objective was to study whether CPAP treatment during the neonatal period is associated with abnormalities in BAEP and BA recordings. METHODS: Included in this retrospective study were preterm infants (birth weight ≤1500 g and/or gestational age ≤32 weeks) born between 2002 and 2006 with a comprehensive clinical background and follow-up data, including the duration of CPAP treatment (n = 162). BAEP and BA were recorded near the mean corrected age of one month. The following variables from BAEP and BA examinations were analysed: latencies of BAEP components I, III, V, interpeak intervals (IPI) I-V, I-III, III-V (ms), amplitude I and V (µV), amplitude ratio I/V and BA thresholds. RESULTS: In the adjusted analysis, a longer CPAP treatment leads to longer latencies of BAEP component III (p = 0.01) and V (p = 0.02) in the right ear. CONCLUSION: CPAP treatment may impair the auditory maturation and processing mediated via the dominant right ear. The hearing and neurodevelopment of the children who are treated with CPAP should be followed.

Neonatal brainstem auditory function associates with early receptive language development in preterm children.

AIM: To study whether auditory function measured with brainstem auditory evoked potential and brainstem audiometry recordings in the neonatal period associates with language development 1 year later in preterm infants. METHODS: This retrospective study included 155 preterm infants (birthweight ≤1500 g and/or birth ≤32 gestational weeks) born between 2007 and 2012 at the Turku University Hospital. Auditory function was recorded in neonatal period. Information of language development was gathered at the mean corrected age of 1 year by using the Finnish version of the MacArthur Communicative Development Inventory. RESULTS: Slower auditory processing (longer interpeak interval, IPI I-V) in the right ear in the neonatal brainstem auditory evoked potential recording associated with smaller receptive lexicon size at 1 year (P = .043). Infants with longer IPI I-V were more likely to have a deviant (≤17 words) receptive lexicon size (P = .033). The absence of a contralateral response with right ear stimulation increased the risk for deviant lexicon size (P = .049). CONCLUSION: The results suggest that impaired auditory function in the neonatal period in preterm infants may lead to a poorer receptive language outcome 1 year later. Auditory pathway function assessment provides information for the identification of preterm children at risk for weak language development.