Temporal processing and long-latency auditory evoked potential in stutterers.

INTRODUCTION Stuttering is a speech fluency disorder, and may be associated with neuroaudiological factors linked to central auditory processing, including changes in auditory processing skills and temporal resolution. OBJECTIVE To characterize the temporal processing and long-latency auditory evoked potential in stutterers and to compare them with non-stutterers. METHODS The study included 41 right-handed subjects, aged 18-46 years, divided into two groups: stutterers (n=20) and non-stutters (n=21), compared according to age, education, and sex. All subjects were submitted to the duration pattern tests, random gap detection test, and long-latency auditory evoked potential. RESULTS Individuals who stutter showed poorer performance on Duration Pattern and Random Gap Detection tests when compared with fluent individuals. In the long-latency auditory evoked potential, there was a difference in the latency of N2 and P3 components; stutterers had higher latency values. CONCLUSION Stutterers have poor performance in temporal processing and higher latency values for N2 and P3 components.