title: Cortical activity during cued picture naming predicts individual differences in stuttering frequency.
abstract: Developmental stuttering is characterized by fluent speech punctuated by stuttering events, the frequency of which varies among individuals and contexts. Most stuttering events occur at the beginning of an utterance, suggesting neural dynamics associated with stuttering may be evident during speech preparation.
  
  
  
  This study used EEG to measure cortical activity during speech preparation in men who stutter, and compared the EEG measures to individual differences in stuttering rate as well as to a fluent control group. Each trial contained a cue followed by an acoustic probe at one of two onset times (early or late), and then a picture. There were two conditions: a speech condition where cues induced speech preparation of the picture's name and a control condition that minimized speech preparation.
  
  
  
  Across conditions stuttering frequency correlated to cue-related EEG beta power and auditory ERP slow waves from early onset acoustic probes.
  
  
  
  The findings reveal two new cortical markers of stuttering frequency that were present in both conditions, manifest at different times, are elicited by different stimuli (visual cue, auditory probe), and have different EEG responses (beta power, ERP slow wave).
  
  
  
  The cue-target paradigm evoked brain responses that correlated to pre-experimental stuttering rate.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA 70118, USA. Electronic address: jmock@tulane.edu.
authors.forename: Jeffrey R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Mock
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA 70118, USA.
authors.forename: Anne L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Foundas
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA 70118, USA; Program in Neuroscience, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA 70118, USA.
authors.forename: Edward J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Golob
mesh_terms: D000161:Acoustic Stimulation / Q000379:methods*; D000328:Adult; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000503:physiopathology*; D003463:Cues; D005071:Evoked Potentials / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D007206:Individuality; D008297:Male; D010775:Photic Stimulation / Q000379:methods*; D013060:Speech / Q000502:physiology; D013342:Stuttering / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology*
keywords: Auditory event-related potentials; EEG; Event-related desynchronization; Speech preparation; Stuttering