Infant Neural Processing of Sound TALK Administrative Supplement

University Of Washington, Seattle WA

Investigators

Linked publications & trials

Abstract

ABSTRACT This is an application to NOSI NOT-DC-23-005 for one year of supplemental funding to enhance language assessment and to increase the impact of our ongoing project, the Development of the Neural Processing of Sound in Infancy. In this supplement, we propose adding a 30-month timepoint to our existing longitudinal study with a focus on language assessment. Our presently funded study involves brain measures of speech and pitch processing using magneto-/electroencephalography in combination with a behavioral assay of cross-domain development including language abilities, auditory skills, vocabulary, and adaptive behaviors, obtained at 3-, 6-, and 11-months in infants with and without hearing loss. This proposed work falls within the scope of the funded aims as the study seeks to investigate auditory brain development in the context of hearing ability and language skills. Importantly, this supplement would add a later timepoint, after which late talkers can be identified. Thus, significantly enhancing our ability to characterize early language learning trajectories in tandem with early brain measures of sound processing. We expect hard-of-hearing infants to be at an increased likelihood of late language emergence in addition to 10-20% of our typical hearing (TH) participant sample. Moreover, while most TH participants may not reach late talker criteria, we expect a wide range of language abilities in his cohort. This additional 30-month timepoint, will allow us to expand on our prior aims to identify early brain and behavioral predictors of language outcomes. As we have longitudinal brain measures in combination with both parent-report and direct developmental assessments administered with infants in the laboratory, we are uniquely able to compare objective brain measures to clinically relevant measures of language development longitudinally from 3 months. Current language screening tools are often administered between 18 to 24 months or even later. However, prior studies show that starting intervention programs earlier, such as in the first year of life, leads to more optimal language and learning outcomes. This proposed research has the potential to reveal early brain and behavioral markers of language delay and advance our understanding of whether language screening in the in the first year of life is clinically useful. If successful, these results can lead to improved identification of infants at a higher likelihood of late language emergence, allowing for earlier intervention and prevention. The PI is a developmental auditory neuroscientist and a pediatric speech-language pathologist that has expertise in language assessment in the zero-to-three population in both research and clinical settings. The findings will also serve as the basis for an R01 that extends this research to investigate early auditory brain and behavioral markers of language outcomes in TH and HoH infants for this early-stage investigator.