Using the online version of the Trier Social Stress Test to investigate the effect of acute stress on functional lateralization.

How stress affects functional hemispheric asymmetries is relevant because stress represents a risk factor for the development of mental disorders and various mental disorders are associated with atypical lateralization. Using three lateralization tasks, we investigated whether functional hemispheric asymmetries in the form of hemispheric dominance for language (verbal dichotic listening task), emotion processing (emotional dichotic listening task), and visuo-spatial attention (line bisection task) were affected by acute stress in healthy adults. One hundred twenty right-handed men and women performed these lateralization tasks in randomized order after exposure to a mild online stressor (i.e., an online variant of the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST), TSST-OL) and a non-stressful online control task (friendly TSST-OL, fTSST-OL) in a within-subjects design. Importantly, the verbal and the emotional dichotic listening tasks were presented online whereas the line bisection task was completed in paper-pencil form. During these tasks, we found the expected hemispheric asymmetries, indicating that online versions of both the verbal and the emotional dichotic listening task can be used to measure functional hemispheric asymmetries in language and emotion processing remotely. Even though subjective and physiological markers confirmed the success of the online stress manipulation, replicating previous studies, we found no stress-induced effect on functional hemispheric asymmetries. Thus, in healthy participants, functional hemispheric asymmetries do not seem to change flexibly in response to acute stress.

Comparison of listening efforts in typically developing children and children with central auditory processing disorders.

OBJECTIVES: The study's main objective was to compare Listening Effort (LE) in children with central auditory processing disorder [(C)APD] and typically developing children in quiet and at -2 and -6 dB SNR conditions. And to determine the relationship between LE and auditory processing abilities in children with (C)APD. METHODS: The study included 30 children (15 typically developing children and 15 diagnosed with (C)APD) aged 10-12 years. LE was measured using a dual-tasking paradigm. The primary task required the child to repeat the words. The second task required the child to click the mouse based on the image displayed on the laptop's screen. The primary task was done at quiet, -2 dB SNR, and -6 dB SNR conditions. LE was correlated with dichotic CV, duration pattern test, speech perception in noise - Indian English, and gap detection test in children with (C)APD. RESULTS: A mixed ANOVA was performed with LE in various conditions as the within-subject factor and group as the between-subject factor for both repetition and reaction time. The study found that LE repetition and reaction time had a significant main effect across conditions and groups. The correlation results revealed a significant relationship between LE reaction time with dichotic scores and GDT thresholds only at -2 dB SNR and -6 dB SNR conditions. There was no significant correlation between other auditory processing abilities and LE under different conditions, such as quiet, SPIN-IE, and DPT at -2 dB SNR and -6 dB SNR. CONCLUSION: The study emphasizes the importance of cognitive abilities for adequate listening comprehension in challenging situations. As a result, assessing LE in this population may provide additional information for developing therapeutic activities and assisting the child in overcoming listening difficulties.

The contribution of short-term memory for sound features to speech-in-noise perception and cognition.

Speech-in-noise (SIN) perception is a fundamental ability that declines with aging, as does general cognition. We assess whether auditory cognitive ability, in particular short-term memory for sound features, contributes to both. We examined how auditory memory for fundamental sound features, the carrier frequency and amplitude modulation rate of modulated white noise, contributes to SIN perception. We assessed SIN in 153 healthy participants with varying degrees of hearing loss using measures that require single-digit perception (the Digits-in-Noise, DIN) and sentence perception (Speech-in-Babble, SIB). Independent variables were auditory memory and a range of other factors including the Pure Tone Audiogram (PTA), a measure of dichotic pitch-in-noise perception (Huggins pitch), and demographic variables including age and sex. Multiple linear regression models were compared using Bayesian Model Comparison. The best predictor model for DIN included PTA and Huggins pitch (r2 = 0.32, p < 0.001), whereas the model for SIB included the addition of auditory memory for sound features (r2 = 0.24, p < 0.001). Further analysis demonstrated that auditory memory also explained a significant portion of the variance (28 %) in scores for a screening cognitive test for dementia. Auditory memory for non-speech sounds may therefore provide an important predictor of both SIN and cognitive ability.

Exploring auditory temporal resolution and dichotic listening skills among individuals with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

The study aimed to explore the auditory temporal resolution and dichotic listening skills in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and identify associated health-related factors. Using a cross-sectional design, 87 adults with T2DM and 48 non-diabetic controls, all with normal hearing, participated. The two central auditory processing (CAP) skills were assessed through the Gaps-In-Noise (GIN) and Dichotic-Digits Listening (DDL) tests. T2DM participants underwent blood tests to measure various health-related factors. In the GIN test, the shortest gap threshold (GapTh) obtained across both ears was significantly higher in the diabetic group (9.1 ± 2.4 ms) compared to the non-diabetic group (7.5 ± 1.5 ms), and the score of correctly identified gaps (GapSc) in the diabetic group (45±11 %) was significantly lower than GapSc in the non-diabetic group (52±9 %), p < 0.001. In the DDL test, the free-recall score (73.8 ± 18.5 %) across both ears and the right-ear advantage (-1.3 ± 20.6 %) in the diabetic group were significantly lower than the free-recall score (85.8 ± 11.9 %) and right-ear advantage (6.9 ± 11.9 %) in the non-diabetic group, p < 0.005. Furthermore, the duration of diabetes, eGFR level, retinopathy, carotid plaque, fasting blood glucose level, and HDL-C (good cholesterol) level were factors significantly associated with performances in the GIN and/or DDL tests for T2DM participants. In conclusion, individuals with T2DM are at risk of reduced auditory processing skills in temporal resolution and dichotic listening, impacting their speech understanding. Six health-related factors were identified as significantly associated with CAP skills in T2DM patients.

Development and Evaluation of the Italian Version of the Dichotic Digit Test: Insights from 39 Normal-Hearing Children Aged 11 to 13 years.

BACKGROUND The dichotic digit test (DDT) is one of the tests for the behavioral assessment of central auditory processing. Dichotic listening tests are sensitive ways of assessing cortical structures, the corpus callossum, and binaural integration mechanisms, showing strong correlations with learning difficulties. The DDT is presently available in a number of languages, each appropriate for the subject's native language. However, there is presently no test in the Italian language. The goal of this study was to develop an Italian version of the one-pair dichotic digit test (DDT-IT) and analyze results in 39 normal-hearing Italian children 11 to 13 years old. We used 2 conditions of presentation: free recall and directed attention (left or right ear), and looked at possible effects of sex and ear side. MATERIAL AND METHODS This study involved 3 steps: creation of the stimuli, checking their quality with Italian speakers, and assessment of the DDT-IT in our subject pool. The study involved 39 children (26 girls and 13 boys), aged 11-13 years. All participants underwent basic audiological assessment, auditory brainstem response, and then DDT-IT. RESULTS Results under free recall and directed attention conditions were similar for right and left ears, and there were no sex or age effects. CONCLUSIONS The Italian version of DDT (DDT-IT) has been developed and its performance on 39 normal-hearing Italian children was assessed. We found there were no age or sex effects for either the free recall condition or the directed attention condition.

Opposite perceptual biases in analogous auditory and visual tasks are unique to consonant-vowel strings and are unlikely a consequence of repetition.

Despite wide reporting of a right ear (RE) advantage on dichotic listening tasks and a right visual field (RVF) advantage on visual half-field tasks, we know very little about the relationship between these perceptual biases. Previous studies that have investigated perceptual asymmetries for analogous auditory and visual consonant-vowel tasks have indicated a serendipitous finding: a RE advantage and a left visual field (LVF) advantage with poor cross-modal correlations. In this study, we examined the possibility that this LVF advantage for visual processing of consonant-vowel strings may be a consequence of repetition by examining perceptual biases in analogous auditory and visual tasks for both consonant-vowel strings and words. We replicated opposite perceptual biases for consonant-vowel strings (RE and LVF advantages). This did not extend to word stimuli where we found RE and RVF advantages. Furthermore, these perceptual biases did not differ across the three experimental blocks. Thus, we can firmly conclude that this LVF advantage is unique to consonant-vowel strings and is not a consequence of the repetition of a relatively limited number of stimuli. Finally, a test of covariances indicated no cross-modal relationships between laterality indices suggesting that perceptual biases are dissociable within individuals and cluster on mode of presentation.

Reduced digit spans and ear dominance using dichotic digits in bimodal cochlear-implant users.

Bimodal stimulation, a cochlear implant (CI) in one ear and a hearing aid (HA) in the other, provides highly asymmetrical inputs. To understand how asymmetry affects perception and memory, forward and backward digit spans were measured in nine bimodal listeners. Spans were unchanged from monotic to diotic presentation; there was an average two-digit decrease for dichotic presentation with some extreme cases of decreases to zero spans. Interaurally asymmetrical decreases were not predicted based on the device or better-functioning ear. Therefore, bimodal listeners can demonstrate a strong ear dominance, diminishing memory recall dichotically even when perception was intact monaurally.

Dichotic listening and interhemispheric integration after callosotomy: A systematic review.

The right-ear advantage (REA) for recalling dichotically presented auditory-verbal stimuli has been traditionally linked to the dominance of the left cerebral hemisphere for speech processing. Early studies on patients with callosotomy additionally found that the removal of the corpus callosum leads to a complete extinction of the left ear, and consequently the today widely used models to explain the REA assume a central role of callosal axons for recalling the left-ear stimulus in dichotic listening. However, later dichotic-listening studies on callosotomy patients challenge this interpretation, as many patients appear to be able to recall left-ear stimuli well above chance level, albeit with reduced accuracy. The aim of the present systematic review was to identify possible experimental and patient variables that explain the inconsistences found regarding the effect of split-brain surgery on dichotic listening. For this purpose, a systematic literature search was conducted (databases: Pubmed, Web of Knowledge, EBSChost, and Ovid) to identify all empirical studies on patients with surgical section of the corpus callosum (complete or partial) that used a verbal dichotic-listening paradigm. This search yielded ks = 32 publications reporting patient data either on case or group level, and the data was analysed by comparing the case-level incidence of left-ear suppression, left-ear extinction, and right-ear enhancement narratively or statistically considering possible moderator variables (i.a., extent of the callosal surgery, stimulus material, response format, selective attention). The main finding was an increased incidence of left-ear suppression (odds ratio = 7.47, CI95%: [1.21; 83.49], exact p = .02) and right-ear enhancement (odds ratio = 21.61, CI95%: [4.40; 154.11], p < .01) when rhyming as compared with non-rhyming stimuli were used. Also, an increase in left-ear reports was apparent when a response by the right hemisphere was allowed (i.e., response with the left hand). While the present review is limited by the overall small number of cases and a lack of an appropriate control sample in most of the original studies, the findings nevertheless suggest an adjustment of the classical dichotic-listening models incorporating right-hemispheric processing abilities as well as the perceptual competition of the left- and right-ear stimuli for attention.

Modality matters: Three auditory conflict tasks to measure individual differences in attention control.

Early work on selective attention used auditory-based tasks, such as dichotic listening, to shed light on capacity limitations and individual differences in these limitations. Today, there is great interest in individual differences in attentional abilities, but the field has shifted towards visual-modality tasks. Furthermore, most conflict-based tests of attention control lack reliability due to low signal-to-noise ratios and the use of difference scores. Critically, it is unclear to what extent attention control generalizes across sensory modalities, and without reliable auditory-based tests, an answer to this question will remain elusive. To this end, we developed three auditory-based tests of attention control that use an adaptive response deadline (DL) to account for speed-accuracy trade-offs: Auditory Simon DL, Auditory Flanker DL, and Auditory Stroop DL. In a large sample (N = 316), we investigated the psychometric properties of the three auditory conflict tasks, tested whether attention control is better modeled as a unitary factor or modality-specific factors, and estimated the extent to which unique variance in modality-specific factors contributed incrementally to the prediction of dichotic listening and multitasking performance. Our analyses indicated that the auditory conflict tasks have strong psychometric properties and demonstrate convergent validity with visual tests of attention control. Auditory and visual attention control factors were highly correlated (r = .81)-even after controlling for perceptual processing speed (r = .75). Modality-specific attention control factors accounted for unique variance in modality-matched criterion measures, but the majority of the explained variance was modality-general. The results suggest an interplay between modality-general attention control and modality-specific processing.

Dichotic Sentences Test Performance of Adults with communication complaints. / Desempenho no Teste Dicótico de Sentenças em Adultos com queixa comunicativa.

PURPOSE: To analyze the performance of normal-hearing adults with communication complaints in the Dichotic Sentences Test. METHODS: We selected from the database 15 normal-hearing participants with normal results in the Digits Dichotic Test, aged between 19 and 44 years, right-handed, who reported communicative complaints. The Dichotic Sentences Test was applied using two protocols consisting of four different combinations of lists called sequences 1 and 2, in the following order: training, divided attention step, right and left directed attention steps. RESULTS: In the first application sequence, the average performance in the divided attention step was 84.7% for the right ear and 60.67% for the left, with statistical difference between ears. The asymmetry between ears varied from -50% to 60%. In the directed attention step, the average performance was 99.33% for the right ear and 98% for the left, with no statistical difference. In the second application sequence, there was a tendency for better results, more pronounced for the left ear, with no statistical significance, with the performance variation and asymmetry between ears remaining high. In the comparison between the sequences, in the divided attention step, it was found that, for the right ear, 40% of the individuals did not vary, 33% performed worse, and 26.7% performed better; for the left ear, 6.6% did not vary, 20% performed worse, and 73.33% performed better. There was result stability in the directed attention step. CONCLUSION: The normal-hearing adults with communication complaints presented a heterogeneous profile, especially in the divided attention step, with a marked difference between ears and response variability.

OBJETIVO: Analisar o desempenho de adultos normo-ouvintes com queixa comunicativa no Teste Dicótico de Sentenças. MÉTODO: Selecionou-se em banco de dados, 15 participantes normo-ouvintes com resultados normais no Teste Dicótico de Dígitos, idades entre 19 a 44 anos, destros, que referiram queixa comunicativa. O Teste de Dicótico de Sentenças foi aplicado por meio de dois protocolos compostos por quatro diferentes combinações de listas denominados de sequências 1 e 2, de acordo com a seguinte ordem: treino, etapa de atenção dividida, etapas de atenção direcionada à direita e à esquerda. RESULTADOS: Na sequência de aplicação 1, a média de desempenho na etapa de atenção dividida foi 84,67% na orelha direita e 60,67% na esquerda, com diferença estatística entre orelhas, com assimetria entre orelhas variando de -50% a 60%. Na etapa de atenção direcionada, a média de desempenho foi 99,33% na orelha direita e 98% na esquerda, sem diferença estatística. Na sequência de aplicação 2, houve tendência de melhores resultados, mais acentuada na orelha esquerda, sem significância estatística, mantendo elevadas a variação de desempenho e a assimetria entre orelhas. Verificou-se na comparação entre as sequências, na etapa de atenção dividida, que na orelha direita 40% dos indivíduos não variaram, 33% pioraram, 26,7% melhoraram; na orelha esquerda, 6,6% não variaram, 20% pioraram e 73,33% melhoraram. Na etapa de atenção direcionada houve estabilidade nos resultados. CONCLUSÃO: Os adultos normo-ouvintes, com queixas comunicativas, apresentaram um perfil heterogêneo, especialmente na etapa de atenção dividida, com acentuada diferença entre as orelhas e variabilidade de respostas.

Dichotic-listening performance after complete callosotomy: No relief from left-ear extinction by selective attention.

The surgical section of the corpus callosum (callosotomy) has been frequently demonstrated to result in a left-ear extinction in dichotic listening. That is, callosotomy patients report the left-ear stimulus below chance level, resulting in substantially enhanced right-ear advantage (REA) compared with controls. A small number of previous studies also suggest that callosotomy patients can overcome left-ear extinction when the instruction encourages to attend selectively to the left-ear stimulus. In the present case study, we re-examine the role of selective attention in dichotic listening in two patients with complete callosotomy and 40 age- and sex-matched controls. We used the standardised Bergen dichotic-listening paradigm which uses stop-consonant-vowel syllables as stimulus material and includes both a free-report and selective-attention condition. As was predicted, both patients showed a clear left-ear extinction. However, contrasting the earlier reports, we did not find any evidence for a relief from this extinction by selectively attending to the left-ear stimulus. We conclude that previous demonstrations of an attention-improved left-ear recall in callosotomy patients may be attributed to the use of suboptimal dichotic paradigms or residual callosal connectivity, rather than representing a genuine effect of attention.

ARIA treatment benefits are related to severity of dichotic listening deficits in children.

PURPOSE: This study investigated the relationship between dichotic listening (DL) benefits from treatment with Auditory Rehabilitation for Interaural Asymmetry (ARIA) and the severity of DL deficits quantified prior to the onset of treatment. We hypothesized that children with more severe DL deficits would demonstrate greater benefits following ARIA. METHOD: A scale that quantifies deficit severity was applied to dichotic listening scores obtained before and after training with ARIA at multiple clinical sites (n = 92). Using multiple regression analyses, we evaluated the predictive effects of deficit severity on DL outcomes. RESULTS: Results demonstrated that deficit severity can predict benefits from ARIA, as measured by improvements in DL scores in both ears. CONCLUSION: ARIA is an adaptive training paradigm for improving binaural integration abilities in children with DL deficits. The results from this study suggest that children with more severe DL deficits achieve greater benefits from ARIA and that a severity scale may provide important clinical information for recommending intervention.

Dichotic listening deficits in children with hearing loss.

PURPOSE: This correlational study compared dichotic listening among children with significant hearing loss to typically developing children and children clinically assessed for auditory processing disorder. METHOD: Recorded versions of two dichotic tests were delivered under earphones or in the sound field for children using amplification. Individual ear scores and interaural asymmetry were compared to normative data. Matched deficit patterns from both tests were identified, ranked for severity of deficit, and compared across groups. Relationships between dichotic scores and factors related to amplification were investigated in the children with hearing loss. RESULTS: Dichotic scores were significantly poorer among children with hearing loss without the large interaural asymmetries seen in children assessed clinically for auditory processing problems. Device type and age of implantation had no effect on scores; non-dominant ear scores on the digits test were significantly correlated to age of device use in the left ear and duration of device use in the right ear. Non-dominant ear scores with digits were also significantly correlated with bilateral word recognition. CONCLUSIONS: Poor dichotic perception in children with significant hearing losses may be related to the use of recorded test materials, immature skills in attention and working memory, or other factors that contribute to development of vocabulary and language. These weaknesses may interfere with successful mainstream educational placement in these children. Assessment of dichotic performance in this population could lead to deficit-specific interventions that may improve outcomes and enhance educational opportunities for children with hearing loss.

Investigating Auditory Perception at Europe's Highest Mountain Lodge.

Altitude hypoxia can impair sensory and cognitive functions, from causing slowed responses to sensory hallucinations. In a field study, we tested 12 expeditioners at varied altitudes (low: 1696 m; high: 4556 m) with a simple auditory detection task and a dichotic listening paradigm in which a voice was presented, lateralized, within a binaural white noise stream. Slower reaction times and a reduced right ear advantage might be expected at high (vs. low) altitude, due to hypoxia. The participants' performances on both tasks did not differ between conditions, revealing that these functions are resistant to short-term hypoxia in young healthy adults.

The use of the Feather Squadron to identify auditory processing disorders in South African children: a comparative study.

OBJECTIVE: Development of the Feather Squadron (FS) has created a cost-effective, accessible form of assessment through tele-audiology. As accessibility to reliable, cost-effective assessment of auditory processing (AP) skills is limited in South Africa (SA), this study aims to establish whether there is correlation between the FS and traditional tests of AP viz. Frequency Pattern and Dichotic Digits Test, and to establish its relevance to the SA population. DESIGN: Retrospective, within-subject, comparative design used to compare performance on the FS and the traditional tests. Data were considered in two ways: Firstly, using the traditional -2SD cut-off on some subtests of the FS compared to the same traditional tests, and secondly, by comparing the Z-scores obtained on the FS compared to Z-scores on the same traditional tests obtained by applying a double arcsine transformation. STUDY SAMPLE: Sixty-six subjects (35 males, 31 females) aged between 8.08 and 9.75 years (mean = 8.73; SD = 0.51) seen for AP assessments between 2016 and 2019. RESULTS: -2SD criteria yielded no significant association (p > 0.05). Z-score comparison suggested a statistically significant correlation (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: A statistically significant correlation between certain subtests of FS with traditional tests of AP to merit its use in the SA population is suggested.

Auditory Attention Ability under Dichotic Dual-Task Situation in Adults with Listening Difficulties.

INTRODUCTION: Recent studies have reported poor cognition, such as attention and working memory, in adults with listening difficulties (LiD). However, they do not adequately describe the actual state of poor attention ability in adults with LiD. We examined the state of auditory attention in adults with and without LiD in tasks requiring multiple attention controls. METHODS: Twenty-one adults who had normal hearing but complained about LiD encountered during everyday life and 22 healthy controls were included. We presented a target detection task using an odd-ball format for one ear and a sentence repetition task for the other ear. In the target detection task, participants listened to the 1,000-Hz tone served as the standard stimulus, while they had to accept a 2,000-Hz tone presented as the deviant stimulus. In the sentence repetition task, short sentences were presented. The stimuli presented to them were played on a personal computer at the most comfortable level. The participants heard these stimuli through headphones. They were required to press a key for standard stimuli in the target detection task and repeat what they heard immediately in the repetition task. We compared the response accuracy for each ear task between adults with and without LiD. RESULTS: Our results showed that there were significant differences between the participant groups in the auditory dual-task under the dichotic listening situation. When examined individually, four adults with LiD had decreased scores in both the sentence repetition and target detection task, while the other nine participants showed a bias toward either task. Furthermore, the analysis of reaction time for pressing button revealed that the standard deviation of reaction time was extended in participants who scored poorly in either of the ear tasks. On the other hand, all adults without LiD were able to conduct the auditory dual-task exactly and promptly. CONCLUSION: The results suggest that adults with LiD have difficulties in appropriately allocating various cognitive abilities required for each task. We concluded that auditory attention is an important ability to conduct the auditory dual-task, and this is applicable for adults with LiD. Therefore, we believe that it is necessary to use auditory tests that require complex attentional abilities in listening, such as those required in daily life, to assess adults with LiD.

Habilidades auditivas em adultos jovens com e sem percepção de zumbido: um estudo de comparações / Auditory skills in young adults with and without tinnitus perception: a comparative study

RESUMO Objetivo analisar as respostas do processamento das informações auditivas em sujeitos adultos jovens com transtorno do zumbido. Métodos estudo de caráter descritivo e quantitativo. Participaram do estudo 36 sujeitos, com idades entre 19 e 35 anos, divididos em dois grupos: Grupo 1 (20 sujeitos com zumbido crônico) e Grupo 2 (16 sujeitos sem zumbido). Todos os indivíduos foram submetidos à anamnese, inspeção visual do meato acústico externo, audiometria tonal liminar, logoaudiometria, medidas de imitância acústica e, como instrumentos de avaliação, os testes comportamentais do processamento auditivo central - Teste Dicótico de Dígitos, Teste Padrão de Frequência, Teste de Fala no Ruído, Masking Level Difference e Gap in Noise. Resultados existiram diferenças estatisticamente significativas entre os grupos para as respostas do Teste Dicótico de Dígitos na orelha esquerda e para o Gap in Noise em ambas as orelhas. Conclusão adultos jovens com zumbido crônico apresentam prejuízo nas habilidades de integração binaural e resolução temporal.

ABSTRACT Purpose Objective: To analyze auditory information processing responses in young adult subjects with tinnitus disorder. Methods A descriptive and quantitative study was conducted, involving 36 subjects aged between 19 and 35 years. The subjects were divided into two groups: Group 1 (20 subjects with chronic tinnitus) and Group 2 (16 subjects without tinnitus). All participants underwent medical history assessment, Visual Inspection of the External Auditory Canal, Pure-Tone Audiometry, Speech Audiometry, Acoustic Immittance Measures, and used Behavioral Central Auditory Processing Tests as an evaluation tool - Dichotic Digits Test (TDD), Frequency Pattern Test, Speech in Noise, Masking Level Difference, and Gap in Noise (GIN). Results Statistically significant differences were found between the groups for TDD responses in the left ear and for GIN in both ears. Conclusion Young adults with chronic tinnitus exhibit impairments in binaural integration and temporal resolution skills.

AudBility: test-retest reliability in typically developing children aged 6 to 7 years. / AudBility: confiabilidade teste-reteste em crianças com desenvolvimento típico de 6 e 7 anos.

PURPOSE: to investigate the test-retest reliability of the AudBility program in typically developing children aged six-seven years. METHODS: 29 children, male and female, right-handed, native Portuguese speakers and adequate school performance for the age group studied, underwent previous meatoscopy, immittance measurements and the AudBility program was applied, composed of a self-perception questionnaire and auditory tasks, being analyzed the abilities of sound localization, auditory closure, figure-ground, dichotic digits test, temporal resolution, and temporal ordering of frequency and duration. The program was designed and reapplied with an interval of one week under the same conditions. The performance in each task was presented from central tendency and dispersion data and was conducted using the Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC), based on the 95% confidence interval (CI). RESULTS: The analyses showed a positive and significant ICC (p<0.01) for the questionnaire and auditory tasks, except for auditory closure, in the right and left ears and figure-ground in the left ear. The questionnaire mean ICC was 0.742 and ranged from -0.012 to 0.698 for the auditory tasks. CONCLUSION: Based on mean results and upper limit of the CI, the findings showed agreement between moments, classified as good for the questionnaire and moderate to good for five of the seven auditory analyzed tasks (ICC>0.05 and <0.9). The results of the reliability study represent an important parameter for validating the program for the studied age group.

OBJETIVO: investigar a confiabilidade teste-reteste do programa AudBility em crianças com desenvolvimento típico de seis a sete anos. MÉTODO: 29 crianças, sexo masculino e feminino, destros, falantes nativos do Português e desempenho escolar adequado para a faixa etária estudada de acordo com o professor foram submetidas aos procedimentos de meatoscopia, imitanciometria e foi aplicado o programa AudBility, composto por questionário de autopercepção e tarefas auditivas. As tarefas incluíram localização sonora, fechamento auditivo, figura fundo, escuta dicótica, resolução temporal e ordenação temporal de frequência e duração. O programa foi reaplicado com um intervalo de 1 semana sob as mesmas condições de avaliação. O desempenho em cada tarefa foi apresentado a partir de dados de tendência central e dispersão e a confiabilidade a partir do Cálculo do Coeficiente intra-classe (CCI), com base no intervalo de confiança (IC) de 95%. RESULTADOS: As análises demonstraram CCI positivo e significante para o questionário e tarefas auditivas, exceto fechamento auditivo, nas orelhas direita e esquerda e figura-fundo na orelha esquerda. O CCI médio do questionário foi de 0,742 e variou de -0,012 a 0,698 para as tarefas auditivas. CONCLUSÃO: Com base no resultado médio e no limite superior do IC, os achados demonstraram concordância entre os momentos de grau bom para o questionário, e de grau bom a moderado para cinco das sete variáveis auditivas analisadas (CCI>0,05 e < 0,9). Os achados do estudo de confiabilidade representam um parâmetro importante de validação do programa para a faixa etária estudada.

Language lateralization in very preterm children: associating dichotic listening to interhemispheric connectivity and language performance.

BACKGROUND: Language difficulties of very preterm (VPT) children might be related to weaker cerebral hemispheric lateralization of language. Language lateralization refers to the development of an expert region for language processing in the left hemisphere during the first years of life. Children born VPT might not develop such a dominant left hemisphere for language processing. A dichotic listening task may be a functional task to show the dominance of the left hemisphere during language processing. During this task, different acoustic events are simultaneously presented to both ears. Due to crossing fibers in the brain, right ear stimuli are transferred directly to the left hemisphere, and left ear stimuli are transferred first to the right hemisphere and then, through the corpus callosum (CC), to the left hemisphere. Dichotic listening typically shows a right ear advantage, assuming to reflect left hemispherical language dominance. The CC, in particular the splenium, is associated with auditory processing and is considered important for language lateralization. The objective of this work was to explore whether dichotic listening performance in school-aged VPT children are associated with language performance and interhemispheric connectivity. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study of 58 VPT children and 30 full term controls at age 10 years. Language performance and dichotic digit test (DDT) were assessed. In 44 VPT children, additionally diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) was performed using a 3 T MRI scanner. Fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity (MD) values of the splenium of the CC were extracted. RESULTS: Poorer right ear DDT scores were associated with poorer language performance in VPT children only (p = 0.015). Association between right ear DDT scores and MD of the splenium approached the level of significance (p = 0.051). CONCLUSIONS: These results support the hypothesis that poor language performance in VPT children may be a consequence of weaker lateralized language organization, due to a poorly developed splenium of the CC. Dichotic listening may reflect the level of language lateralization in VPT children. IMPACT: Poor language performance in VPT children may be a consequence of weaker lateralized language organization, due to a poorly developed splenium of the CC. Dichotic listening performance may reflect the level of language lateralization in VPT children and right ear scores of a dichotic listening task are associated with both the splenium of the corpus callosum and language performance. If our results could be validated in future research, it suggests that poor CC development may indicate VPT children at risk for long-term language problems.

Cross-modal aftereffects of visuo-manual prism adaptation: Transfer to auditory divided attention in healthy subjects.

OBJECTIVE: Prism adaptation was shown to modify auditory perception. Using a dichotic listening task, which assesses auditory divided attention, benefits of a rightward prism adaptation were demonstrated in neglect patients (i.e., a syndrome following right hemisphere brain damage) by reducing their left auditory extinction. It is currently unknown whether prism adaptation affects auditory divided attention in healthy subjects. In the present study, we investigated the aftereffects of prism adaptation on dichotic listening. METHOD: A sample of 47 young adults performed a dichotic listening task, in which pairs of words were presented with two words sounded simultaneously, one in each ear. Three parameters were measured: The percentage of recalled words, the percentage of correctly recalled words, and the laterality index (LI). RESULTS: Prism adaptation to a leftward optical deviation (L-PA) significantly increased the overall percentage of recalled words (p = .044) and that from the right ear (p = .002), and the overall LI (p = .049). CONCLUSIONS: For the first time, these findings demonstrate that L-PA produced an orientation of the auditory divided attention in favor of the right ear in healthy participants. This asymmetrical aftereffect provides a new argument in favor of the cross-modal dimension of prism adaptation, although an acclimatization effect of the dichotic listening task is also discussed. Our study opens up a new avenue for using prism adaptation in the field of auditory rehabilitation requiring a modulation of auditory attention. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).