Changes in auditory cortical thickness following music training in children: converging longitudinal and cross-sectional results.
Level 3 - non-randomized controlled study
Non-randomized prospective controlled cohort study combined with a cross-sectional comparison.
PubMed 32902662 · doi:10.1007/s00429-020-02135-1
What was done
Two MRI studies evaluated auditory cortical thickness in children. Study 1 was a cross-sectional comparison between child musicians (aged 9-11) and matched non-musicians, assessing cortical thickness and its relationship to musical proficiency. Study 2 was a four-year prospective longitudinal cohort study comparing children enrolled in a systematic music training program against an untrained control group, with structural MRI assessments performed prior to training initiation and four years later.
What was found
The abstract reports no exact numerical values, sample sizes, or test statistics. In Study 1, child musicians exhibited greater cortical thickness in the posterior segment of the right superior temporal gyrus (STG) compared to non-musicians; thickness was positively related to musical proficiency, but this relationship did not reach statistical significance. In Study 2, children receiving music training showed a strong trend toward a lower rate of cortical thinning in the right posterior STG over the four-year follow-up compared to untrained controls.
Why it matters
These findings provide longitudinal and cross-sectional evidence suggesting that music education may influence structural neurodevelopment by attenuating normal developmental cortical thinning in auditory association regions.
Limits
The abstract omits sample sizes, participant demographics, dropout rates, and quantitative metrics (such as effect sizes, p-values, and confidence intervals). The longitudinal component is non-randomized, introducing potential confounding and self-selection bias. Furthermore, key results did not reach conventional statistical significance: the correlation between STG thickness and musical proficiency was non-significant, and the longitudinal effect was described only as a strong trend.
Cited by
- partial Research by Assal Habibi at the University of Southern California demonstrated that arts/music training alters brain structure and increases brain mass.