Left and Right Hemisphere Contributions to Speech Perception
Enrolling by invitation · Not applicable
Conditions studied: Neural Bases of Speech Perception
In brief
Left and right temporal brain areas are thought to contribute to speech perception, but the division of labor between left and right hemisphere regions is still unclear. Here we use transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to stimulate left and right temporal foci and a vertex control site to temporarily disrupt activation at the stimulation site, using a "virtual lesion" approach to test the effect of stimulation site on a series of speech perception tasks. This portion of the project is basic research. However, since TMS is viewed as an intervention, studies involving TMS in this grant are considered clinical trials.
Key facts
- Study ID
- NCT04989309
- Run by
- University of Connecticut
- People needed
- 26
- Starts
- 2024-12-19
- Expected to finish
- 2026-06-30
- Last updated by the study team
- 2025-06-15
Who can join
Age: 18 and older. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: accepted.
You may qualify if…
- Monolingual native speaker of English
- No history of neurological impairments or disease
- Free of speech and language disorders (per self-report, and confirmed by short language battery described by Fidler, Vance, \& Plante, 2011)
- Pure-tone thresholds of 30 decibels or better in both ears (no worse than mild hearing loss), with no more than 15 dB between-ear difference.
- Right-handed, as confirmed by Oldfield Handedness Inventory
You may not qualify if…
- Any condition where TMS would be contraindicated according to the most recent guidelines, including, but not limited to:
- History of seizure or epilepsy
- Metal in the skull
- Use of legal or illicit drugs that can potentially reduce the threshold for seizure. As examples, we list some exclusionary drugs in each of the following categories. This is not an exhaustive list of the exclusionary drugs. We consult with faculty in the University of Connecticut College of Pharmacy to check for seizure risk with other drugs that participants report.
- Antidepressants including Imipramine, amitriptyline, sertraline, venlafaxine, buproprion
- Antipsychotics including Chlorpromazine, clozapine, haloperidol, aripiprazole
- Antivirals including foscarnet, ganciclovir
- Antiparasitics including chloroquine, mefloquine (antiparasitics)
- Antibiotics including penicillin, ampicillin
- Immunosuppressants including cyclosporin
- Anticholinergenics
- Antihistimines (including over-the-counter drugs like Claritin \& Benadryl)
- Sympathomimetics (including Sudafed, Ritalin).
- Illegal drugs such as methamphetamines, cocaine, MDMA, ketamine.
- Diagnosis of a psychiatric disorder (per self-report)
- Pregnancy
Where it is running
- University of Connecticut — Storrs, Connecticut, United States
Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov
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