Modulation of tactile detection threshold with rhythmic somatosensory entrainment

Here, we investigated whether rhythmically induced brain oscillations by means of vibrotactile stimulation (i.e. sensory entrainment) modulate tactile detection. In line with previous findings, we show in trials without sensory entrainment that preceding alpha power and phase-angles in beta oscillations predict the detection rate of a weak tactile stimulus. Further, we reveal a masking effect induced by sensory entrainment stimulation resulting in higher perception thresholds. Intriguingly, we find that the masking effect is modulated by the strength of neural entrainment resulting from 20 Hz stimulation. Our data provide evidence for the possibility to modulate sensory processing with rhythmic sensory stimulation. However, in light of the induced masking effects, the feasibility of this entrainment method to modulate human behavior remains questionable.