Evidences of cognitive effects over auditory steady-state responses by means of artificial neural networks and its use in brain–computer interfaces

The auditory steady-state response is an EEG potential elicited by the repetitive presentation of auditory stimuli. Researchers have found contradictory results about the influence of cognitive tasks, such as the selective attention, over this potential. It has been proved that selective attention is able to modulate cortex originated steady-state responses, such as the visual. This fact has been widely used to develop brain–computer interfaces. However for complete locked-in patients, such as those in an advanced state of Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, visual stimuli are not longer suitable, hence the need of another type of stimulus, generally auditory, for both stimulation and feedback. In this paper we present a study based on artificial neural networks that evidences the effects of selective attention over auditory steady-state responses and the use in brain–computer interfaces is discussed.