Study of Pitch Perception and Memory Deficits and Training in Hearing-Impaired and Congenital Amusia Participants

What this Trial Is About

Pitch perception and memory play key roles in how people understand sounds, including recognizing where sounds come from, speech patterns, and music. This research evaluates these abilities in people with hearing impairments who use cochlear implants and those with congenital amusia, comparing them to control participants without these conditions. Researchers aim to better understand pitch processing difficulties and test a new pitch training program. Participants engage in two training protocols that include auditory and visual exercises using a tablet. These protocols involve 30 sessions of about 20 minutes each, performed at home over 15 weeks. The study groups include cochlear implant users, participants with congenital amusia, and control participants. Both pitch and visuo-spatial training protocols are applied to all groups. During the study, various measures are collected such as listening test accuracy and reaction times, as well as brain activity recordings using EEG, MEG, and MRI. These assessments occur both during the training period and at the studys start. The researchers monitor how well participants respond to training and track changes in brain responses related to pitch perception. The study welcomes healthy volunteers aged 5 to 90 years, with participation lasting through the training sessions and associated evaluations.

Pitch Perception and Memory: Deficits and Training