The influence of noise on blood flow in the basilar artery (BA) - measurements with transcranial color-coded duplex sonography (TCCD)

Acoustic stimuli are being reported as a cause of changes in resistance in the basilar artery (BA). It was the aim of this study to investigate this effect under standardized conditions dependent upon the intensity of the evoking stimulus. Twenty healthy subjects with normal hearing (male/female 14/6; mean age 26.4 years) were exposed to ‘pink noise’ for periods of 2 min at 75, 85 and 95 dB(A). Parallel to this, the Doppler spectrum of the BA and both the Pourcelot resistance index and the Gosling pulsatility index were measured by means of transcranial color-coded Doppler sonography. In comparison with the base value (at rest) a significant increase in resistance was noted during noise exposure. The noise-induced resistance changes could be interpreted as a consequence of changes in activity of the various centers of the auditory pathway and cerebral function. Further animal experiments may prove the connection between BA blood flow and resistance and their changes depending on different acoustic stimuli or different hearing pathophysiology.