EEG correlates of auditory stimuli processing in children with specific language impairment

[S. M. Žunić]

110 str.

Neuronauke - Razvojna neurofiziologija / Neurosciences - Developmental neurophysiology

Osnovni cilj istraživanja je da se na osnovu linearnih (spektralna snaga, koherencija) i nelinearnih parametara (fraktalna dimenzija i entropija uzorka opisa EEG signala utvrde sličnosti i razlike pri auditivnoj obradi kod dece sa specifičnim jezičkim poremećajem u poređenju sa decom istog uzrasta tipičnog razvoja, i njihove promene u odnosu na uzrast dece. Auditivni stimulusi primenjeni u studiji su bili: reči, nereči, dva tipa rečenica (potvrdna i upitna) i narativni diskurs. Uzorak je činio 100 ispitanika podeljenih u četiri grupe: prva i druga grupa - deca uzrasta 4.0- 4.11 godina (SJP=25, TP=25); treća i četvrta grupa - deca uzrasta 5.0-5.11 godina (SJP=25, TP=25). Rezultati istraživanja su ukazali da se najveći broj statistički značajnih razlika, uzimajući u obzir sve auditivne stimuluse i posmatrane parametre, javlja na elektrodama: Fp1, Fp2, F7, F4, F8, T5, T4, T6 i P4. To ukazuje na dinamičke procese koji se odvijaju u regijama odgovornim za prijem i obradu auditivnih i govorno-jezičkih signala, kao i regijama odgovornim za govorno-jezičku produkciju. Takođe je uočeno da se tip stimulusa u određenoj vrsti stimulusa retko javlja kao parametar na osnovu koga su se mogle statistički razlikovati podgrupe u okviru posmatranog uzorka. Utvrđeno je da mirno stanje i uzrast kao kovarijable imaju statistički značajan uticaj na vrednosti parametara tokom zadataka. Parametar fraktalna dimenzija pokazuje najviši nivo diskriminativnosti po pitanju grupa (TP/SJP) i uzrasnih grupa (4-4.11/5-5.11) tokom auditivne obrade rečenica. Rezultati studije nedvosmisleno potvrđuju različitu osetljivost pojedinih parametara u opisivanju EEG signala tokom obrade auditivnih stimulusa različite kompleksnosti kod dece tipičnog i atipičnog razvoja.

The primary aim of the research is to determine the similarities and differences in auditory processing in children with specific language impairment (SLI) compared to typically developing (TD) children of the same age and their changes relative to the children's age, based on linear (spectral power, coherence) and nonlinear parameters (fractal dimension and sample entropy) describing EEG signals. The auditory stimuli used in the study included: words, non-words, two types of sentences (declarative and interrogative), and narrative discourse. The sample consisted of 100 participants divided into four groups: the first and second groups were children aged 4.0-4.11 years (SLI=25, TD=25), and the third and fourth groups were children aged 5.0-5.11 years (SLI=25, TD=25). Our research revealed that the highest number of statistically significant differences, considering all auditory stimuli and observed parameters occur at the electrodes: Fp1, Fp2, F7, F4, F8, T5, T4, T6, and P4. This suggests dynamic processes occurring in regions responsible for the reception and processing of auditory and speech-language signals, as well as regions responsible for speech-language production. It was also observed that the type of stimulus within a certain kind of stimulus rarely emerged as a parameter that could statistically differentiate subgroups within the observed sample. We also found that the resting state and age as covariates have a statistically significant impact on the parameter values during tasks. The parameter fractal dimension shows the highest level of discriminative power regarding the groups (TD/SLI) and age groups (4-4.11/5-5.11) during auditory sentence processing. Our study results unequivocally confirm the different sensitivity of certain parameters in describing EEG signals during the processing of auditory stimuli of varying complexity in typically developing children and children with atypical development. These findings have significant implications for our understanding of auditory processing in children with specific language impairment.

Elektroencefalografija, auditivna obrada, EEG korelati, analiza signala, specifični jezički poremećaj

Electroencephalography, auditory processing, EEG correlates, signal analysis, Specific Language Impairment

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