Acufeni: inibizione laterale e successiva : potenziali uditivi e vocati e un'ipotesi patogenetica

At first the authors do some brief considerations on the last hypotheses about the pathogenesis of tinnitus. The experience described in the present work is a new way of approach to study BSER. We have tested the AEP in a group of 22 patients suffering of tinnitus, in order to demonstrate if there were any alterations of the mechanism of lateral inhibition in these patients. This purpose was sought by the analysis of the recovery cycle of the 5th wave evoked by the second of a couple of clicks. The statistical comparyson between the results obtained in the ears with tinnitus and those without it, has pointed out a significative difference of proceedings for the interval of 20 msec between the two clicks of the couple. This result suggests that in the ears with tinnitus an alteration of the mechanism of lateral and perhaps temportal inhibition could be present. On the basis of these results the authors suggest a new pathogenetic hypothesis.