Journal article
Cortical oscillations predict auditory grouping in listeners with various hearing configurations
NeuroImage (Orlando, Fla.), Vol.323, 121597
12/01/2025
DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2025.121597
PMCID: PMC12699519
PMID: 41270846
Abstract
•Listeners with hearing loss exhibit a large variability in auditory object detection.•Cochlear implant users lacked phase-locking responses to auditory objects.•Delta and theta induced spectral power to auditory objects were weak or absent in listeners with hearing loss.•Induced spectral power in alpha and beta bands was robust in all listeners.•Alpha and beta induced spectral power predicted auditory grouping ability.
Auditory grouping relies on the ability to bind tones with coherent spectral features over time to form auditory objects. Sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) degrades spectral resolution, and the extent of this degradation varies with the hearing configuration. However, it remains unclear how SNHL impacts auditory grouping and whether different hearing configurations affect this ability. This study investigated task performance and cortical activity during auditory object detection in four groups with different hearing configurations: Twenty normal-hearing (NH) listeners, seventeen bilateral hearing aid users with acoustic-only stimulation (A-only), thirty-one cochlear implant (CI) users with acoustic and electric stimulation (A+E), and seventeen bilateral CI users with electric-only stimulation (E-only). While electroencephalography was recorded, participants performed a stochastic figure-ground task requiring the detection of spectrally and temporally coherent tone pips embedded in a background of random-frequency tone clouds. Sensitivity to the task was high across groups, although CI groups showed poorer performance compared to NH and A-only groups. Relative to NH listeners, the object-related evoked responses were weaker in A-only listeners and absent in CI groups. Delta (2-3.5Hz) and theta (4-7Hz) event-related synchronization to the auditory objects were only observed in the NH group, except for the A+E group, which showed a delta synchronization. However, all groups exhibited alpha (8-15Hz) and beta (17-30Hz) event-related desynchronization, with no significant group differences. Notably, individual differences in alpha and beta desynchronization predicted task sensitivity. These findings suggest that alpha and beta cortical activity, measured during an auditory object detection task, reflects auditory grouping in any hearing configuration.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Cortical oscillations predict auditory grouping in listeners with various hearing configurations
- Creators
- Nour Alsabbagh - University of IowaBob McMurray - University of IowaTimothy D Griffiths - University of IowaJoel I Berger - Dept of Neurosurgery, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, IA, USAKyogu Lee - Seoul National UniversityPhillip E Gander - Dept of Otolaryngology, University of Iowa Hospital and Clinics, IA, USAInyong Choi - Dept of Communication Sciences & Disorders, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, USA
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- NeuroImage (Orlando, Fla.), Vol.323, 121597
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2025.121597
- PMID
- 41270846
- PMCID
- PMC12699519
- NLM abbreviation
- Neuroimage
- ISSN
- 1053-8119
- eISSN
- 1095-9572
- Publisher
- Elsevier Inc
- Grant note
- National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD): P50 (DC000242) Medical Research Council [MRC(UK)] Programme grant: MR/T032553/1 U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) Hearing Restoration and Rehabilitation Program: W81XWH1910637, HT9425-23-1-0912 NIDCD: DC008089 National Research Foundation of Korea - Ministry of Science and ICT: RS-2024-00,461,617, 2022H1D3A2A01092818
This work was supported by National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) P50 (DC000242) awarded to I.C., T. D.G., B.M., and Bruce J. Gantz, a Medical Research Council [MRC(UK)] Programme grant to T.D.G. (MR/T032553/1), U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) Hearing Restoration and Rehabilitation Program grants awarded to I.C. (W81XWH1910637 and HT9425-23-1-0912), and NIDCD Grant No DC008089 awarded to B.M. This work was also supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea grant funded by the Ministry of Science and ICT (RS-2024-00,461,617, 2022H1D3A2A01092818).
- Language
- English
- Electronic publication date
- 11/19/2025
- Date published
- 12/01/2025
- Academic Unit
- Radiology; Communication Sciences and Disorders; Languages, Linguistics, Literatures, and Cultures ; Psychological and Brain Sciences; Iowa Neuroscience Institute; Neurosurgery; Otolaryngology; Health, Sport, and Human Physiology
- Record Identifier
- 9985033878202771
Metrics
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