Mismatch negativity contribution in multiple sclerosis patients.

UNLABELLED: Mismatch Negativity is a functional index of the supratemporal auditory cortex. AIM: The aim of the present study on Mismatch Negativity (MMN) in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients was to evaluate if the MMN can be correlated with cognitive deficits assessed by the Paced Auditory Addition Task--PASAT. METHOD: a clinical study in forty females and 20 males separated in two groups: control individuals and those with a definite diagnosis of MS underwent a duration and frequency MMN. The MMN latencies and negative amplitudes obtained from the MS group were compared to the ones from the control group. The scores from the Paced Auditory Addition Task were correlated either with the presence or the absence of MMN. RESULTS: MMN was found in 60% of the individuals with multiple sclerosis within the auditory stimulation protocol with varied durations, and in 45 % within the auditory stimulation protocol with frequency variations. There were no statistically significant differences in latencies and amplitudes when compared to controls. We found a statistically significant correlation for the lack of MMN wave together with cognitive disorder asserted by the PASAT. CONCLUSIONS: The MMN correlated to the cognitive deficit assessed by the PASAT.