Neurophysiological Indices of Atypical Auditory Processing and Multisensory Integration Are Associated with Symptom Severity in Autism

Overview

Journal J Autism Dev Disord

Publisher Springer

Date 2014 Sep 24

PMID 25245785

Citations 86

Authors

Alice B Brandwein

John J Foxe

John S Butler

Hans-Peter Frey

Juliana C Bates

Lisa H Shulman

Sophie Molholm

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Atypical processing and integration of sensory inputs are hypothesized to play a role in unusual sensory reactions and social-cognitive deficits in autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Reports on the relationship between objective metrics of sensory processing and clinical symptoms, however, are surprisingly sparse. Here we examined the relationship between neurophysiological assays of sensory processing and (1) autism severity and (2) sensory sensitivities, in individuals with ASD aged 6-17. Multiple linear regression indicated significant associations between neural markers of auditory processing and multisensory integration, and autism severity. No such relationships were apparent for clinical measures of visual/auditory sensitivities. These data support that aberrant early sensory processing contributes to autism symptoms, and reveal the potential of electrophysiology to objectively subtype autism.

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