Effect of Auditory Maturation on the Encoding of a Speech Syllable in the First Days of Life.

Laís Ferreira,Eliara Pinto Vieira Biaggio,Piotr Henryk Skarzynski,Milaine Dominici Sanfins,Magdalena Beata Skarzynska

doi:10.3390/brainsci11070844

Laís Ferreira, Eliara Pinto Vieira Biaggio + Show 3 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11070844

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Abstract

(1) Background: In neonates and infants, the physiological modifications associated with language development are reflected in their Frequency Following Responses (FFRs) in the first few months of life. (2) Objective: This study aimed to test the FFRs of infants in the first 45 days of life in order to evaluate how auditory maturation affects the encoding of a speech syllable. (3) Method: In total, 80 healthy, normal-hearing infants, aged 3 to 45 days old, participated in this study. The sample was divided into three groups: GI, 38 neonates from 3 to 15 days; GII, 25 infants from 16 to 30 days; and GIII, 17 infants from 31 to 45 days. All participants underwent FFR testing. Results: With age, there was a decrease in the latency of all FFR waves, with statistically significant differences among the groups studied for waves V, A, E, F, and O. The mean amplitudes showed an increase, with a statistically significant difference only for wave V. The slope measure increased over the 45 days, with a statistically significant difference between GIII and GI and between GIII and GII. (4) Conclusions: The encoding of a speech sound changes with auditory maturation over the first 45 days of an infant’s life.

Highlights

In infants, the adequate assessment of hearing is indispensable, since auditory function is one of the prerequisites for the development of an individual’s social communication skills.To achieve adequate language development, an infant needs, in addition to normal peripheral hearing, coordinated function of the entire central auditory pathway [1]
There was a numerical decrease in the absolute latency of all Frequency Following Responses (FFRs) waves as the infants became older, 2.4
The data showed that the physiological changes involved in the maturation process of the auditory pathway are reflected in the FFR responses

Summary

Introduction

The adequate assessment of hearing is indispensable, since auditory function is one of the prerequisites for the development of an individual’s social communication skills. To achieve adequate language development, an infant needs, in addition to normal peripheral hearing, coordinated function of the entire central auditory pathway [1]. While perception of sound begins in the brainstem, more complex auditory skills depend on the subcortex and cortex [2]. The perception of speech involves representing complex sounds linguistically and identifying general patterns of auditory features. Speech and hearing both involve the complex processing of acoustic information, and both depend on each other [3,4]. Linguistic experience, through contact with the native language from birth, promotes an infant’s speech perception, language, and cognition [5]

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