Neural processing of changes in phonetic and emotional speech sounds and tones in preterm infants at term age

Kaisamari Kostilainen,Eino Partanen,Kaija Mikkola,Valtteri Wikström,Satu Pakarinen,Vineta Fellman,Minna Huotilainen

doi:10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2019.10.009

Kaisamari Kostilainen, Eino Partanen + Show 5 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2019.10.009

Copy DOI

Abstract

ObjectiveAuditory change-detection responses provide information on sound discrimination and memory skills in infants. We examined both the automatic change-detection process and the processing of emotional information content in speech in preterm infants in comparison to full-term infants at term age. MethodsPreterm (n = 21) and full-term infants' (n = 20) event-related potentials (ERP) were recorded at term age. A challenging multi-feature mismatch negativity (MMN) paradigm with phonetic deviants and rare emotional speech sounds (happy, sad, angry), and a simple one-deviant oddball paradigm with pure tones were used. ResultsPositive mismatch responses (MMR) were found to the emotional sounds and some of the phonetic deviants in preterm and full-term infants in the multi-feature MMN paradigm. Additionally, late positive MMRs to the phonetic deviants were elicited in the preterm group. However, no group differences to speech-sound changes were discovered. In the oddball paradigm, preterm infants had positive MMRs to the deviant change in all latency windows. Responses to non-speech sounds were larger in preterm infants in the second latency window, as well as in the first latency window at the left hemisphere electrodes (F3, C3). ConclusionsNo significant group-level differences were discovered in the neural processing of speech sounds between preterm and full-term infants at term age. Change-detection of non-speech sounds, however, may be enhanced in preterm infants at term age. SignificanceAuditory processing of speech sounds in healthy preterm infants showed similarities to full-term infants at term age. Large individual variations within the groups may reflect some underlying differences that call for further studies.

Highlights

Preterm birth increases the risk of abnormal neurodevelopment, especially in preterm infants born at low gestational weeks or born with intrauterine growth restriction
Positive mismatch responses (MMR) mainly to the emotional stimuli and some of the phonetic deviants were found at all four electrodes in both infant groups
In the latency window 400–500 ms, ANOVA revealed a main effect of Variant [F(8, 29) = 8.301, p < .001, η2 = .187], resulting in the responses for the emotional sounds happy and angry being statistically larger than the phonetic deviants in almost all of the comparisons

Summary

Introduction

Preterm birth increases the risk of abnormal neurodevelopment, especially in preterm infants born at low gestational weeks or born with intrauterine growth restriction. Accurate discrimination of sounds and the ability to process various changes in speech are essential for normal language development. This auditory change-detection processing can be studied with a component of event-related potentials (ERP), the mismatch negativity (MMN). The MMN is a neural brain response elicited by a change in an auditory stimulus sound stream (Näätänen et al, 1978; Näätänen et al, 2010). This change can be, for example, a change in the duration or frequency of a sound.

Methods

Results

Conclusion