Auditory brain-stem responses in syphilis.

Abstract
Analysis of auditory brain-stem electrical responses (BSER) provides an effective means of detecting lesions in the auditory pathways. The wave patterns were analyzed in 11 patients with secondary or latent syphilis with no clinical CNS symptoms, and in 2 patients with congenital syphilis and general paralysis. Decreased amplitudes and prolonged latencies occurred frequently in patients with secondary and advanced syphilis. This technique is a notable diagnostic advance in detecting syphilitic damage of the brain stem.