Auditory neuropathy is a type of hearing loss defined by the preservation of cochlear outer hair cell function and abnormal or absent auditory brainstem responses. Auditory neuropathy may accompany peripheral neuropathy in a variety of dominant syndromes such as Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease (Satya-Murti et al., 1979) and has been observed in Friedreich ataxia (Satya-Murti et al., 1980). Auditory neuropathy unassociated with peripheral neuropathy most commonly occurs as a sporadic or recessive trait; see, for example, 601071. Genetic Heterogeneity of Autosomal Dominant Auditory Neuropathy See also AUNA2 (620384), caused by mutation in the ATP11A gene (605868) on chromosome 13q34, and AUNA3 (619832), caused by mutation in the TMEM43 gene (612048) on chromosome 3p25.

X-linked deafness-5 is a neurologic disorder characterized by childhood onset of auditory neuropathy and later onset of distal sensory impairment affecting the peripheral nervous system (summary by Zong et al., 2015).

Autosomal dominant auditory neuropathy-3 (AUNA3) is characterized by progressive hearing loss with inability to discriminate speech but preserved sensitivity to sound (Jang et al., 2021). For a discussion of genetic heterogeneity of autosomal dominant auditory neuropathy, see AUNA1 (609129).

Autosomal dominant auditory neuropathy-2 (AUNA2) is characterized by postlingual onset of progressive bilateral sensorineural hearing loss in the second decade, leading to profound deafness in the fifth decade. Affected individuals show abnormal auditory brainstem responses (ABR) even before the onset of symptoms. Outer hair cell (OHC) function is preserved initially, but declines with age (Lang-Roth et al., 2017). For a discussion of genetic heterogeneity of autosomal dominant auditory neuropathy, see AUNA1 (609129).