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Updated: May 7, 2026
Infant Auditory Processing and Event-related Brain Oscillations
Published on: July 1, 2015
Auditory event-related potentials at preschool age in children born very preterm
Holger Hövel1, Eino Partanen2, Minna Huotilainen3
1Department of Clinical Sciences, Pediatrics, Lund University and Lund University Hospital, Lund, Sweden.
Insights
Preschoolers born very preterm show auditory event-related potential (ERP) patterns similar to term-born children with cognitive deficits. P1 and N2 latencies mature rapidly, but mismatch negativity is not a reliable indicator of abnormalities in this group.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Psychology
- Pediatrics
Background:
- Children born very preterm (VP) are at high risk for cognitive dysfunction.
- Auditory event-related potentials (ERPs) are sensitive measures of neural processing in early development.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess auditory event-related potentials (ERPs) in preschool-aged children born very preterm (VP).
- To investigate potential cognitive dysfunction markers in VP children using ERPs.
Main Methods:
- An oddball paradigm with standard and deviant tones was used to elicit ERPs.
- Auditory P1, N2, and mismatch negativity (MMN) responses were analyzed.
- VP children (n=70) were compared to term-born controls (TC; n=15) and near-term controls (n=12).
Main Results:
- P1 and N2 latencies showed inverse correlation with age in both VP and TC groups.
- VP children exhibited smaller P1 amplitudes compared to near-term and TC groups (p<0.05).
- No significant differences were found in mismatch negativity (MMN) responses between groups.
Conclusions:
- P1 and N2 responses demonstrate rapid maturation around age 5, with decreasing latencies.
- Mismatch negativity (MMN) may not be a robust measure for identifying abnormalities in VP children.
- VP children display ERP patterns previously observed in term-born children with cognitive deficits, highlighting the need for careful age correction in ERP studies.
Objective:
To assess auditory event-related potentials at preschool age in children born very preterm (VP, 27.4 ± 1.9 gestational weeks, n=70) with a high risk of cognitive dysfunction.
Methods:
We used an oddball paradigm consisting of a standard tone randomly replaced by one of three infrequent deviants (differing in frequency, sound direction or duration).
Results:
The P1 and N2 latencies were inversely correlated to age (50-63 months) both in VP (r=-0.451, p<0.001, and r=-0.305, p=0.01, respectively) and term born controls (TC; n=15). VP children had smaller P1 than near-term (n=12) or TC (1.70 ± 0.17 μV vs 2.68 ± 0.41 and 2.92 ± 0.43, respectively; p<0.05). Mismatch negativity response did not differ between groups.
Conclusions:
Our data suggest a fast maturation of P1 and N2 responses with fast decrease in P1 and N2 latencies around the age of 5 years. Mismatch negativity response does not seem to be a robust measure for defining abnormalities in VP children.
Significance:
In ERP studies in preschool children, even small, non-significant group differences in age at recording should be corrected for. Very preterm born children at preschool age have aERP patterns as earlier described in full-term born children with cognitive deficits.
