['A paradoxical enhancement of the magnitude of the N1 wave of the auditory event-related potential (ERP) has been described when auditory stimuli are presented at very short (< 400 ms) inter-stimulus intervals (ISI). Here, we examined whether this enhancement is specific for the auditory system, or whether it also affects ERPs elicited by stimuli belonging to other sensory modalities.', 'We recorded ERPs elicited by auditory and somatosensory stimuli in 13 healthy subjects. For each sensory modality, 4800 stimuli were presented. Auditory stimuli consisted in brief tones presented binaurally, and somatosensory stimuli consisted in constant-current electrical pulses applied to the right median nerve. Stimuli were delivered continuously, and the ISI was varied randomly between 100 and 1000 ms. We found that the ISI had a similar effect on both auditory and somatosensory ERPs. In both sensory modalities, ISI had an opposite effect on the magnitude of the N1 and P2 waves: the magnitude of the auditory and the somatosensory N1 was significantly increased at ISI < or = 200 ms, while the magnitude of the auditory and the somatosensory P2 was significantly decreased at ISI < or = 200 ms.'] Is the enhancement of the N1 wave elicited by sensory stimuli presented at very short inter-stimulus intervals a general feature across sensory systems?