Investigation of Human Laryngeal Evoked Brainstem Potentials

The primary purpose of this study will be to determine whether the proposed study protocol will allow for reliable detection of the human Laryngeal evoked brainstem responses (LEBR). Laryngeal evoked brain stem responses will be recorded from five test subjects under general anesthesia in the operating room with the assistance of an electrophysiologist with expertise in evoked potentials. Once the feasibility of obtaining tracings are established on the first few subjects, responses will be recorded from other test subjects with the aim of determining the optimal placement of stimulating electrodes and detection leads necessary to elicit an adequate response. The effect of varying the stimulus intensity will also be studied. Once parameters for testing have been standardized, normative configurations for the laryngeal evoked brainstem response tracings can be determined by patients both in the office setting and in the operating room.