Age-related latency changes in the brain-stem auditory evoked potentials.

The effects of age on the brain-stem auditory evoked potentials were studied on 156 healthy subjects with ages ranging from 18 to 76 years. The latencies of peaks I-VII and the interpeak latencies of I-III, III-V and I-V were consistently shorter for the female group than the male group. The females also had higher peak amplitude than the males. The effects of sex on the peak and interpeak latencies were observed in all age groups. There was a small progressive prolongation in the peak latency with increasing age, particularly peak V. Although a correlation between the age and the I-III interval was not observed, there was also a small increase with age in the interpeak latencies of III-V and I-V.