Test-retest reliability of mismatch negativity for duration, frequency andintensity changes

Objectives: The test-retest reliabilities of the mismatch negativity (MMN) elicited by deviances in sound duration, frequency, and intensity were comp ared. Methods: The MMN was recorded with a 64-channel electroencephalograph (EEG) from 15 healthy adult subjects in two sessions over intervals of 1-27 days . During the recordings, subjects watched a silent movie while they were pr esented with one long stimulus sequence consisting of 6 types of tones. The standard tone (P = 0.8) of 75 ms in duration consisted of 3 lowest harmoni c partials with 500 Hz as the fundamental frequency. Each of the 5 differen t deviant tones was presented with P = 0.04: frequency deviants (+/-5%, +/- 10%), duration deviants (-66%, -33%), and intensity deviants(-15 dB). Results: The 66% duration decrement elicited MMN with the most replicable a mplitude (r = 0.78) and latency (r = 0.76) among the deviances tested. Conclusions: Since these reliabilities considerably exceed those reported p reviously, these data support the use of the duration decrement deviance pr esented with spectrally rich tones while investigating the integrity of the patients' cognitive brain functions using the MMN. (C) 1999 Elsevier Scien ce Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.