Abstract:

Objective We aim to explore the central auditory nervous system (CANS) functioning in children with nonsyndromic cleft palates by analyzing the auditory evoked potentials and event-related potentials (ERP). Methods A total of 34 children with nonsyndromic cleft palates were recruited as subjects, and 27 normally developed children were selected as the normal controls. Auditory brainstem response (ABR), middle latency response (MLR), and mismatch negativity (MMN) of ERP were selected as indices to observe the function of CANS in children in both groups. Results Astatistically significant difference between the groups was obtainedin the MMN recording (F=227.69, P<0.01), whereas no significant group differences were obtained in the ABR and MLR results (P>0.05). Children with nonsyndromic cleft palates showed diminished MMN responses compared with the normal controls, whereas ABR and MLR were within the normal range. Conclusion Children with nonsyndromic cleft palates are at risk of central auditory discrimination dysfunction. The significant abnormal eventrelated potentials recorded in children with cleft palates suggest that the dysfunction of CANS maybe located at the cortical level and normal function of CANS was located at the brain stem and sub-cortical level.

Key words: cleft palate, auditory evoked potential, event related potential, central auditory nervous system