Child Neuropsychology最新文献

Behavioral impairment is comorbid with pediatric medical conditions and impacts academic, social-emotional, and medical outcomes. In prior work, we applied graph-theory analysis to parent-report measures of behavior to derive multidimensional profiles in a multi-site database of children with psychiatric disorders and healthy controls (comprised of participants from Children's National Hospital, Georgetown University, and Kennedy Krieger Institute), and identified three unique profiles characterized by relative weaknesses in (a) metacognition, (b) emotion regulation, and (c) inhibition. In this study, we also found broadly the same behavioral profiles within a large (N = 466) cross-sectional clinical database collected at Children's National Hospital from 2014 to 2018 comprised of children with pediatric medical conditions affecting the central nervous system. A support vector machine (SVM) classification derived from the psychiatric sample was then applied to the medical sample and had high (but not perfect) accuracy, suggesting subtle differences in profile composition between medical and nonmedical populations, particularly within the Inhibit subgroup. These findings lend further support to the existence of three transdiagnostic profiles, representing unique targets for personalized intervention. However, findings also highlight that the etiology of behavior problems (psychiatric versus medical) may matter.

Considering that the early school year are critical for the development of visuoperceptual organization skills, we investigated the effect of stepwise training in perceptual strategies using drawing-based materials on children's perceptual and constructional performance. Forty-four children (24 girls), aged 6.5 to 9 years (M = 7.34; SD = 0.64), were randomly assigned to either the experimental or control group (N = 22 per group). All participants completed the Bender Visual- Motor Gestalt Test - II (a graphomotor test of perceptual organization) and the Block Design test (a measure of constructional ability) before and after the training. The experimental group received the stepwise training on copying of the Rey- Osterrieth Complex Figure, while the control group received drawing materials without any instructions. The study employed a 2 (Group: Experimental, Control; between-subject) × 2 (Phase: Pretest, Posttest; within-subject) design. After controlling for the pretest scores, results showed that the experimental group outperformed the control group on both tasks. No effects of age or gender were detected. We suggest that perceptual organization and planning skills promoted by our training contributed to the enhanced performance. Given the varying degree of similarity between each task and the training materials, we proposed that both near and far transfer of skills acquired through visuoperceptual organization training can occur in children.

The Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT) is a widely used neuropsychological tool developed for assessing various aspects of verbal memory. We present a RAVLT version for Russian-speaking children, developed in digital form with two sets of materials. The current study aimed to investigate whether the two versions of the Russian RAVLT are equivalent in terms of psycholinguistic characteristics and whether participants perform comparably on them. Second, we computed the norms based on a large cohort of Russian-speaking children (n = 239) aged 5-18 years using a multivariate regression-based approach. Results demonstrated that the two test versions can be used interchangeably for memory assessment in children. Moreover, we determined the cutoff scores for performance on the nine raw trial scores and five composite scores (total learning, learning rate, retroactive interference, retention, and retrieval efficiency scores). Only age, but not sex or test version, modulated test performance. The new Russian RAVLT for children can be used by clinicians and researchers to detect memory impairments in the Russian-speaking pediatric population.

Learning and memory are crucial neuropsychological skills, linked with the development of play, adaptive skills, and academic functioning. Children and adolescents with critical congenital heart disease (cCHD) are at risk for a range of neurodevelopmental difficulties. Here, we examine visual and verbal learning and memory skills in a school-age sample of children and adolescents with cCHD, and explore how medical, neuropsychological, and social variables predict school-age learning and memory. This is a retrospective observational study of 189 patients with cCHD (age 5-18 years) who attended a neuropsychological evaluation through the Cardiac Neurodevelopmental Program. Results demonstrate that on average, children and adolescents with cCHD show relatively poorer performance on tasks of visual learning and memory and list learning and memory, skills with a higher executive burden, whereas there are no differences in story learning and memory compared to normative samples. Working memory is identified as the most consistent predictor of learning and memory. Medical variables also contribute to learning and memory at school age, whereas social determinants of health are less closely linked. These findings demonstrate the importance of considering downstream effects of core aspects of attention and executive functioning skills on other neurodevelopmental abilities.

Children with Neurofibromatosis Type 1 (NF1) experience significant executive dysfunction interfering with outcomes across the lifespan. To date, there have been limited interventions targeting executive function impairments, and even less explored within the NF1 population. The primary purpose of this study was to determine if an existing executive functioning intervention, Unstuck and On Target! (UOT), is a feasible and acceptable intervention for children with NF1. Participants were four children with NF1 (75% male; 75% Caucasian) between the ages of 9 to 12 years and their parents. Participants engaged in 20 weekly group sessions of UOT over the course of five months. Attendance rates and satisfaction ratings were primary outcomes. Attendance was >95% and attrition was null. Parent feedback and satisfaction ratings were overwhelmingly positive. In the first study of its kind, the results suggest that UOT is a feasible and acceptable cognitive intervention for children with NF1. Future development of Phase II/III studies of UOT to examine treatment dose and efficacy is supported.

This study sought to determine the influence of various demographic variables on pass/failure on a pediatric performance validity test, the Memory Validity Profile (MVP) in a mixed clinical sample (n = 393; 62% male, 62% White, median age 11 years). Children who failed the MVP (n = 72, 18%) according to a uniform cutoff of ≤30/32 correct were younger and were more likely to have a special education history than those who passed it (n = 321, 82%). There were no statistically significant group differences on other variables such as sex, race, parental education, history of treatment for ADHD or other psychiatric disorder. Possible false positive findings were relatively most common in children under the age of 10 years and in children who received special education services under the Physical/Other Health Impairment or Speech & Language Impairment qualifications. We conclude that a uniform cutoff for pass/failure on the MVP across any and all ages and diagnostic categories is ill-advised. Instead, we recommend the development of various adjusted cutoffs for this test that maintain 90% specificity at both ends of the age spectrum as well as with different medical or developmental conditions.

Early motor development is a key predictor of development in other skill domains and specific neurodevelopmental disorders, but it is typically measured as achievement of milestones rather than rate of development. To explore the value of the latter approach, this study utilized a novel caregiver report method to examine differences in the developmental trajectory of motor development in term-born compared to preterm-born infants. Caregiver-infant dyads (331 term, 240 preterm) were followed from birth through 12 months (48% female; 6.4% Hispanic; 34.1% Black; 10.3% Mixed or Biracial; and 48.3% White). Longitudinal Item Response Theory (IRT) modeling was used to compare growth trajectories of motor skills between term and preterm infants. The moderating effects of biological sex on group differences also were examined. The main effect for term status was significant. Preterm infants exhibited slower rates of growth in motor ability over the first 12 months compared with term infants. Differences in rate of growth were significant by 6 months of age. In the term group only, females exhibited more rapid growth than males in motor ability. Findings indicate that caregiver report yields reliable estimates of growth in the latent trait of motor ability, with slower rate of growth in infants born preterm. Estimates of latent growth in motor ability may provide more sensitive measures of neurodevelopmental risk and a method to examine response to treatment.

Executive function (EF) impairments are prevalent in survivors of neonatal critical illness such as children born very preterm (VPT) or with complex congenital heart disease (cCHD). This paper aimed to describe EF profiles in school-aged children born VPT or with cCHD and in typically developing peers, to identify child-specific and family-environmental factors associated with these profiles and to explore links to everyday-life outcomes. Data from eight EF tests assessing working memory, inhibition, cognitive flexibility, switching, and planning in n = 529 children aged between 7 and 16 years was subjected into a latent profile analysis. Three EF profiles were identified: The "favorable" profile was defined by mean scores in the normal range (z-scores ≤ -0.5 below the norm; n = 263, 49.7%). The "at-risk" profile's mean scores were 0.5 to 1 SD below the norm (n = 236, 44.6%). The "impaired" profile's mean scores were >1 SD below the norm (n = 30, 5.8%). Children of the two clinical groups were more likely to fall into the at-risk or impaired profile. Irrespective of clinical group, lower socioeconomic status, slower processing speed and poorer fine motor skills were associated with a more impaired profile. In turn, falling into the at-risk or impaired profile was associated with a higher need for educational support, poorer everyday-life EFs and more behavioral problems. Children in the impaired profile reported lower psychosocial quality of life. This study provides evidence for an increased risk of survivors of neonatal critical illness to present with an impaired EF profile that translates into everyday-life difficulties. Long-term monitoring is needed to promote optimal outcome.

Diagnosis of sports-related concussion (SRC) primarily relies on an athlete's self-report of injury and associated symptoms. Social pressures and attitudes surrounding SRC influence athlete reporting behavior. Unfortunately, underreporting of SRC symptoms is an issue among adolescent athletes. Nondisclosure of SRC symptoms may lead to premature return-to-play and potential persistent symptoms. This scoping review summarizes prevailing theories that explain SRC symptom reporting intent and behavior among adolescent athletes. Literature was reviewed following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) extension for Scoping Review guidelines. Inter-rater reliability was calculated at each stage. Thirty-four articles published between 2013-2024 were included. Inter-rater reliability was fair to perfect across all review stages. Of the 16 unique theories described, the Theory of Reasoned Action/Theory of Planned Behavior (TRA/TPB) was the most frequently cited theory explaining SRC symptom reporting behavior. Although the TRA/TPB framework was useful when predicting SRC symptom reporting intent, it did not adequately predict reporting behavior, consistent with the broader health behavior literature which has established that intention is not a good predictor of behavior. In light of these findings, new frameworks must be considered that consider neurodevelopmental, cognitive, and cultural factors, as these may be more useful for understanding SRC symptom reporting behavior in adolescence.

The NIH Toolbox is used extensively in various research settings, including clinical trials, observational studies, and longitudinal studies. Its validity and reliability have been systematically appraised only in adults. The current study systematically evaluated the validity and reliability of the NIH Toolbox for assessing neurocognitive, motor and emotional-behavioral functioning in children. Based on 22 studies including over 60,000 participants, sufficient evidence was found for the validity and reliability of most tests in the Cognition Battery and Motor Battery. However, there was insufficient evidence to assess the validity and reliability of the Emotion Battery. Thus, this review supports the use of the NIH Toolbox Cognition and Motor Batteries in assessing neurocognitive functioning in 3-17-year-olds.