Abstract
Introduction The study of electrophysiological auditory measures with different types of masking
makes it possible to understand temporal processing skills and the processes involved
in speech recognition in noise situations. The use of modulated masking in cortical
measures of hearing enables the obtainment of analysis parameters of the masking release
and its impact on neural auditory processing.
Objective To investigate the behavior of cortical auditory evoked potentials (CAEPs) with modulated
masking in the normal hearing population.
Data synthesis A total of 2,159 articles were identified in the initial search; of these, 12 were
selected for full reading. After excluding studies that did not meet the eligibility
criteria, six articles were included in the present systematic review.
The results show that the type of masking has an influence on cortical auditory behavior,
indicating a different effect on neural posture rergarding CAEP responses. Modulated
noise as masking in the CAEP record generated statistically higher and earlier responses
compared with non-modulated/steady noise, evidenced by the results obtained in the
meta-analysis with subgroup analysis. These responses may indicate an influence of
the type of noise in the neural auditory coding.
Conclusion Better responses were observed in modulated masking in terms of the behavior of CAEPs.
Decreased latency and increased amplitude of cortical measurements with the use of
modulated noise indicate a lower masking effect of this noise in cortical auditory
processing, evidencing the masking release phenomenon.
Keywords
electrophysiology - auditory evoked potentials - noise - speech perception - perceptual
masking - hearing
