Discovering Auditory Processing Disorders

February 15, 2006 -- Auditory processing is when your brain recognizes and interprets the sounds around you. Humans hear when sound travels through the ear and is changed into electrical information interpreted by the brain. An auditory processing disorder means that something is adversely affecting the processing or interpretation of the information. Children with APD often do not recognize subtle differences between sounds in words. The statement "Tell me how a chair and a couch are alike" may sound to a child with APD like "Tell me how a cow and a hair are alike." These kinds of problems are more likely to occur when a person with APD is in a noisy environment or when he or she is listening to complex information. APD is often referred to as central auditory processing disorder (CAPD). Other common names are auditory perception problem, auditory comprehension deficit, central auditory dysfunction, central deafness, and so-called "word deafness."

CAUSES: The possible causes of CAPD are varied and can include head trauma, lead poisoning, chronic ear infections, or other unknown factors. Because there are many different possibilities -- even combinations of causes -- each child has to be assessed on an individual basis. There are things that can be down, but catching it early is the key and has always been a challenge.

BIOMAP: Scientists from the Auditory Neuroscience Laboratory at Northwestern University have developed a new diagnostic tool that can quickly and objectively identify disordered auditory processing of sound -- a problem associated with learning impairments in many children. With early detection, these children have a high likelihood of benefiting from remediation strategies involving auditory training. The BioMAP is a robust and repeatable speech-evoked response that can reliably identify individuals with deficits in the timing of neural responses that cannot be revealed with other stimuli. Unlike conventional brainstem evoked response recordings using clicks or tones, the BioMAP uses speech syllables that better reflect the acoustic and phonetic complexities characteristic of speech. Using electrodes placed on the scalp, the BioMAP reflects neural activity produced by the auditory brainstem in response to speech. These neural events mimic the acoustic characteristics of the speech signal with remarkable fidelity.

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