Documentation of peripheral auditory function in studies of the auditory P300 as biomarker for neurological and psychological disorders : a critical review

Abstract

Background: The auditory P300 is widely investigated for its clinical application in certain neurological and psychological disorders. However, hearing loss is also known to affect auditory P300 recordings. The inclusion of participants with peripheral hearing impairments in such studies would, therefore, affect the validity of results and conclusions drawn. Objective: A critical review was conducted to examine whether the peripheral hearing status of participants with neurological and psychological disorders was documented in published clinical studies of the auditory P300 response. Design: Literature searches were conducted using three databases: PubMed, PsycINFO, and Scopus. Studies of participants with seven neurological or psychological disorders were included in the study. Each disorder was coupled with the main search phrase in separate searches on each database. Literature review software, DistillerSR, was utilized to aid in data extraction and analysis. Results: Among included studies, the auditory P300 was utilized for three primary reasons: as a biomarker, as a genetic predictor, and as a treatment progress tracker. Of the 102 papers which met the inclusion criteria, the majority (64%) did not describe the peripheral hearing sensitivity of participants. For participants at risk for hearing impairment, particularly age-related hearing loss, only a single publication adequately described formal hearing evaluation. Conclusion: Peripheral hearing status is rarely defined in studies of the P300 response. It is likely that the inclusion of participants with hearing loss affects the validity of findings for these studies. We recommend formal hearing assessment prior to inclusion of participants in studies of the auditory P300 response. The findings of this study may increase the awareness among researchers outside the field of audiology of the effects of peripheral hearing loss on the auditory P300.