AUDITORY LATERALIZATION AND PLANUM-TEMPORALE ASYMMETRY

MORPHOLOGICAL left-right asymmetry of the planum temporale was measure d using in vivo magnetic resonance morphometry in 52 normal volunteers . Laterality indices of four verbal dichotic tests differing in stimul us material, stimulus presentation or stimulus reproduction were corre lated with the degree of anatomical planum temporale asymmetry. None o f these correlations reached a level of statistical significance. In a ddition, there was no difference in the degree of planum asymmetry bet ween subjects with a dichotic right-ear or left-ear advantage. A possi ble reason for this lack of a relationship between auditory and anatom ical lateralization could be that asymmetrical performance on dichotic listening is unrelated to superior temporal auditory functions.