Distortion product otoacoustic emissions in healthy newborns: normative data.

Distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAE) offer an alternative to transiently evoked otoacoustic emissions (TEOAE) as an audiological test. The former can be used as a screening technique, and may also provide frequency-specific information about the functional state of the cochlea. We recorded DPOAE in a group of healthy newborns to establish the Characteristics of a DPOAE “audiogram” (DP-gram) in this population. The DP-gram can be obtained with characteristics quite similar to those observed in adults, with two sharp peaks of maximum amplitude at F2 frequencies of 2 kHz and 5-6 kHz, and a decline in DPOAE amplitude in mid frequencies. The results confirm the limitations of DPOAE r…