T Kujala1, S Kuuluvainen2, S Saalasti2, E Jansson-Verkasalo3, L von Wendt4, T Lepistö5. 1. Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Institute of Behavioural Sciences, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 9, FIN-00014, Helsinki, Finland. Electronic address: teija.m.kujala@helsinki.fi. 2. Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Institute of Behavioural Sciences, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 9, FIN-00014, Helsinki, Finland. 3. Faculty of Humanities, Logopedics, University of Oulu, P.O. Box 1000, FIN-90014, Oulu, Finland; Clinical Neurophysiology, Neurocognitive Unit, University Hospital of Oulu, P.O. Box 50, FIN-90029, Oulu, Finland. 4. Department of Child Neurology, Hospital for Children and Adolescents, University of Helsinki, Finland. 5. Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Institute of Behavioural Sciences, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 9, FIN-00014, Helsinki, Finland; Department of Child Neurology, Hospital for Children and Adolescents, University of Helsinki, Finland.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Asperger syndrome, belonging to the autistic spectrum of disorders, involves deficits in social interaction and prosodic use of language but normal development of formal language abilities. Auditory processing involves both hyper- and hypoactive reactivity to acoustic changes. METHODS: Responses composed of mismatch negativity (MMN) and obligatory components were recorded for five types of deviations in syllables (vowel, vowel duration, consonant, syllable frequency, syllable intensity) with the multi-feature paradigm from 8-12-year old children with Asperger syndrome. RESULTS: Children with Asperger syndrome had larger MMNs for intensity and smaller MMNs for frequency changes than typically developing children, whereas no MMN group differences were found for the other deviant stimuli. Furthermore, children with Asperger syndrome performed more poorly than controls in Comprehension of Instructions subtest of a language test battery. CONCLUSIONS: Cortical speech-sound discrimination is aberrant in children with Asperger syndrome. This is evident both as hypersensitive and depressed neural reactions to speech-sound changes, and is associated with features (frequency, intensity) which are relevant for prosodic processing. SIGNIFICANCE: The multi-feature MMN paradigm, which includes variation and thereby resembles natural speech hearing circumstances, suggests abnormal pattern of speech discrimination in Asperger syndrome, including both hypo- and hypersensitive responses for speech features. 2010 International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
OBJECTIVE:Asperger syndrome, belonging to the autistic spectrum of disorders, involves deficits in social interaction and prosodic use of language but normal development of formal language abilities. Auditory processing involves both hyper- and hypoactive reactivity to acoustic changes. METHODS: Responses composed of mismatch negativity (MMN) and obligatory components were recorded for five types of deviations in syllables (vowel, vowel duration, consonant, syllable frequency, syllable intensity) with the multi-feature paradigm from 8-12-year old children with Asperger syndrome. RESULTS:Children with Asperger syndrome had larger MMNs for intensity and smaller MMNs for frequency changes than typically developing children, whereas no MMN group differences were found for the other deviant stimuli. Furthermore, children with Asperger syndrome performed more poorly than controls in Comprehension of Instructions subtest of a language test battery. CONCLUSIONS: Cortical speech-sound discrimination is aberrant in children with Asperger syndrome. This is evident both as hypersensitive and depressed neural reactions to speech-sound changes, and is associated with features (frequency, intensity) which are relevant for prosodic processing. SIGNIFICANCE: The multi-feature MMN paradigm, which includes variation and thereby resembles natural speech hearing circumstances, suggests abnormal pattern of speech discrimination in Asperger syndrome, including both hypo- and hypersensitive responses for speech features. 2010 International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
Authors: Francisco J Ruiz-Martínez; Elena I Rodríguez-Martínez; C Ellie Wilson; Shu Yau; David Saldaña; Carlos M Gómez Journal: J Autism Dev Disord Date: 2020-02
Authors: Sarah M Haigh; Pat Brosseau; Shaun M Eack; David I Leitman; Dean F Salisbury; Marlene Behrmann Journal: Front Psychiatry Date: 2022-05-25 Impact factor: 5.435