Conveying Temporal Information to the Auditory System via Transcranial Current Stimulation

Abstract

This review paper investigates whether non-invasive application of electric current to the human scalp can be utilized to convey perceptually relevant temporal information to the auditory system. Recent studies have corroborated this notion by demonstrating that transcranial current stimulation (TCS) with temporally structured (sinusoidal and/or sound envelope-shaped) current biases neural processing and auditory perception toward the temporal pattern of the applied current. However, the perceptual benefits achieved with TCS so far are fairly modest. In sum, the temporally specific modulatory ability of TCS makes it a useful scientific tool for identifying temporal mechanisms for auditory perception. Practical or clinical applications (e.g., to enhance or restore auditory functions in normal or hearing-impaired populations) are currently still premature and require further optimization of stimulation parameters.