Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39680490›Full record

ArticleEar and hearing

Touch Helps Hearing: Evidence From Continuous Audio-Tactile Stimulation.

Xueying Fu, Fren T Y Smulders, Lars Riecke

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Ear and hearing. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Top-Down Attention Modulates Phase Effects on Audio-Tactile Processing.Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences · 2026
    Article
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Xueying FuFaculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands.
Fren T Y Smulders
Lars Riecke

Funding

China Scholarship Council CSC202008210294
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesIdentifying target sounds in challenging environments is crucial for daily experiences. It is important to note that it can be enhanced by nonauditory stimuli, for example, through lip-reading in an ongoing conversation. However, how tactile stimuli affect auditory processing is still relatively unclear. Recent studies have shown that brief tactile stimuli can reliably facilitate auditory perception, while studies using longer-lasting audio-tactile stimulation yielded conflicting results. This study aimed to investigate the impact of ongoing pulsating tactile stimulation on basic auditory processing.

designIn experiment 1, the electroencephalogram (EEG) was recorded while 24 participants performed a loudness-discrimination task on a 4-Hz modulated tone-in-noise and received either in-phase, anti-phase, or no 4-Hz electrotactile stimulation above the median nerve. In experiment 2, another 24 participants were presented with the same tactile stimulation as before, but performed a tone-in-noise detection task while their selective auditory attention was manipulated.

resultsWe found that in-phase tactile stimulation enhanced EEG responses to the tone, whereas anti-phase tactile stimulation suppressed these responses. No corresponding tactile effects on loudness-discrimination performance were observed in experiment 1. Using a yes/no paradigm in experiment 2, we found that in-phase tactile stimulation, but not anti-phase tactile stimulation, improved detection thresholds. Selective attention also improved thresholds but did not modulate the observed benefit from in-phase tactile stimulation.

conclusionsOur study highlights that ongoing in-phase tactile input can enhance basic auditory processing as reflected in scalp EEG and detection thresholds. This might have implications for the development of hearing enhancement technologies and interventions.

Indexed as

Auditory PerceptionElectroencephalographyTouchAcoustic StimulationAdultAttentionFemaleHumansLoudness PerceptionMalePhysical StimulationYoung Adult

Identifiers

PMID39680490
PMCPMC11637573

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.