Now showing 1 - 10 of 17
  • Publication
    Visual attention control differences in 12-month-old preterm infants
    There have been few previous attempts to assess the development of early markers of executive function in infants born preterm despite well-established deficits reported for older preterm children that have been closely linked to poorer academic functioning. The present study investigates early attention control development in healthy 12-month-old age-corrected pre-term infants who were born less than 30 weeks and compares their performance to full-term infants. Eye-tracking methodology was used to measure attention control. Preterm Infants spent less time focused on the target and were slower to fixate attention, with lower gestational age associated with poorer target fixation and slower processing speed. There were no significant group differences observed for inhibition of return or interference control. These findings suggest that specific emerging deficits in attention control may be observed using eye tracking methodology in very preterm infants at this early stage of development, despite scores within the average range on the Bayley Scales of Infant Development.
      234Scopus© Citations 14
  • Publication
    Sensory modulation difficulties and assessment in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: a systematic review
    This systematic review aims to (1) establish how different types of assessment measure sensory modulation difficulties in children with ADHD, and (2) to examine whether sensory modulation difficulties can be separated from ADHD symptomatology. The review protocol was registered with PROSPERO (CRD42018091730). PRISMA guidelines were used. Three databases (PsycINFO, PubMed, CINAHL) were searched using a predetermined search string from 1980 to 2020. Twenty-five studies met inclusion criteria. Sensory modulation difficulties are more likely to be reported when caregiver-report or behavioural measures are used, relative to physiological methods. Despite the focus to date on difficulties in auditory and tactile processing in this patient population, the reported studies show no evidence for these difficulties being more prevalent than difficulties in other sensory domains. Caregiver reports show evidence for differences in children with sensory modulation difficulties and ADHD, and those with ADHD only. This review reports variability in the prevalence of sensory modulation difficulties in children with ADHD that is dependent on the tools used to measure this domain. Approaches to the assessment of sensory modulation, and the implications for clinical practice, are considered.
    Scopus© Citations 3  262
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  • Publication
    Prevalence and risk factors for autism spectrum disorder in epilepsy: a systematic review and meta‐analysis
    Aim: To assess the prevalence and risk factors for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in epilepsy, and to better understand the relationship and comorbidity between these disorders. Method: PsychINFO and PubMed were searched for articles published in the past 15 years that examined the prevalence of ASD in individuals with epilepsy. Results: A total of 19 studies were found with a pooled ASD prevalence of 6.3% in epilepsy. When divided by type, the risks of ASD for general epilepsy, infantile spasms, focal seizures, and Dravet syndrome were 4.7%, 19.9%, 41.9%, and 47.4% respectively. Studies with populations under 18 years showed a 13.2 times greater risk of ASD than study populations over 18 years, and samples with most (>50%) individuals with intellectual disability showed a greater risk 4.9 times higher than study populations with a minority of individuals with intellectual disability. The main risk factors for ASD reported in the 19 studies included presence of intellectual disability, sex, age, and symptomatic aetiology of epilepsy. Interpretation: Current research supports a high prevalence of ASD in epilepsy. This study helps to define the clinical profile of patients with epilepsy who are at risk for ASD, which may help clinicians in early screening and diagnosis of ASD in this population. What this paper adds: • Critical evaluation of previous studies examining the prevalence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in individuals with epilepsy. • A meta‐analysis of 19 studies showed a pooled ASD prevalence of 6.3% in individuals with epilepsy. • Studies that included a majority of individuals with intellectual disability or younger population age had a higher prevalence of autism. • Risk factors reported in studies included presence of intellectual disability, sex, age, and symptomatic epilepsy origin.
    Scopus© Citations 98  265
  • Publication
    An exploration of sleep and family factors in young children at familial risk for ADHD
    Objective: The aim of the current study was to examine relations between sleep problems and family factors and early markers of ADHD in young children with and without a familial risk for ADHD. Methods: Differences in sleep behavior and family functioning in children under 6 years with (n = 72) and without (n = 139) a familial risk for ADHD were investigated. The influence of family and sleep factors on the development of early temperament markers of ADHD (effortful control and negative affect) was explored. Parents/caregivers completed questionnaires on family functioning, child sleep behavior, and general regulatory behaviors. Results: A significant difference was observed between high-risk and low-risk groups for family functioning in the infant/toddler (<3 years) and preschool (>3 years) cohorts. Parents of infants/toddlers in the high-risk group reported poorer infant sleep. However, there were no sleep differences reported for the preschool cohort. Family functioning was found to predict effortful control, while sleep quality predicted negative affect. Conclusion: The results of this study highlight potential family and sleep issues for young children with a familial history of ADHD and the potential influence of these factors on early temperament markers of ADHD. Future research should explore these relations further in order to better establish whether early sleep and family interventions could mitigate later ADHD symptomatology.
    Scopus© Citations 3  443
  • Publication
    Executive performance on the preschool executive task assessment in children with sickle cell anemia and matched controls
    Executive deficits are commonly reported in children with sickle cell anemia. Earlier identification of executive deficits would give more scope for intervention, but this cognitive domain has not been routinely investigated due to a lack of age-appropriate tasks normed for preschool children. In particular, information relating to patient performance on an executive task that reflects an everyday activity in the classroom could provide important insight and practical recommendations for the classroom teacher at this key developmental juncture as they enter the academic domain. The performance of 22 children with sickle cell anemia was compared to 24 matched control children on the Preschool Executive Task Assessment. Findings reveal that children with sickle cell anemia are performing poorer than their matched peers on this multi-step assessment. In particular, children with sickle cell anemia required more structured support to shift focus after a completed step, as reflected by poorer scores in the quantitative Sequencing and Completion domains. They also required more support to stay on task, as seen by poorer ratings in the qualitative Distractibility domain.
    Scopus© Citations 6  374
  • Publication
    Task utility and norms for the Preschool Executive Task Assessment (PETA)
    Earlier identification of executive deficits in preschool children using an ecological approach would give more scope for intervention. The Preschool Executive Task Assessment (PETA) was developed to resemble an everyday age-appropriate task in order to examine the self-direction and integration of executive functions during a multistep task. It was designed so that performance can be evaluated in a microanalytic way and so individualized feedback and support can be easily communicated. The utility of the PETA was assessed with 166 three-to five-year olds. Results showed improved performance with increasing age and verbal intellectual quotient as well as good task reliability and utility. Evidence for influence of socioeconomic status, gender, and use of self-talk was also observed. Clinical applications and future directions of this novel measure are discussed.
      678Scopus© Citations 4
  • Publication
    Altered Neurophysiological Processing of Auditory Attention in Preschool Children With Sickle Cell Disease
    Objective: Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a genetic red blood cell disorder that often leads to stroke and executive dysfunction in school-age children and adults. This study aimed to characterize the development of the neural correlates of selective attention, an early component of executive function, in preschool children with SCD. Methods: Auditory event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded while children attended to a story stream in one ear and ignored a second story in the other ear interchangeably. In total, 12 patients (mean age = 5.5, 7 males) and 22 typically developing children (mean age = 4.4, 10 males) were included in the final analyses. Results: By 100 ms, more positive ERP amplitudes were observed for attended relative to unattended stimuli in typically developing children but not those with SCD, suggesting deficits in the ability to focus attention. Reduced attention effects were associated with lower performance intellectual quotient Conclusion: There are deficits in early attention modulation in young children with SCD.
    Scopus© Citations 8  330
  • Publication
    Event-related potential measures of executive functioning from preschool to adolescence
    Executive functions are a collection of cognitive abilities necessary for behavioural control and regulation, and are important for school success. Executive deficits are common across acquired and developmental disorders in childhood and beyond. This review aims to summarize how studies using event-related potential (ERP) can provide insight into mechanisms underpinning how executive functions develop in children from preschool to adolescence. We specifically focus on ERP components that are considered to be well-established markers of executive functioning, including the ability to resist distraction (inhibition, N200), hold scenes in mind (visuospatial working memory, contralateral delay activity), attend to specific stimuli (information processing, P300), follow rules (response monitoring, error-related negativity [ERN], and error-related positivity [Pe]), and adjust to feedback (outcome monitoring, feedback-related negativity). All of these components show developmental changes from preschool to adolescence, in line with behavioural and neuroimaging findings. These ERP markers also show altered developmental trajectories in the context of atypical executive functions. As an example, deficits in executive function are prominently implicated in attention-deficit–hyperactivity disorder. Therefore, this review highlights ERP studies that have investigated the above ERP components in this population. Overall, ERPs provide a useful marker for the development and dysfunction of executive skills, and provide insight into their neurophysiological basis.
      302Scopus© Citations 65
  • Publication
    Sensory modulation and negative affect in children at familial risk of ADHD
    Background/aims: Sensory modulation difficulties are commonly reported in patients with ADHD, however there has been little focus on the development of these difficulties in young children at a higher risk of later ADHD diagnosis. This study investigated whether children with a familial history of ADHD show greater sensory modulation difficulties. We also explored whether sensory modulation was linked to negative affectivity, which has been highlighted as a potential early marker of ADHD. Methods: Parents of children under 6 years with a family history of ADHD (n = 65) and no family history (n = 122) completed questionnaires on sensory modulation and temperament. Results: Children from families with ADHD were reported to display extreme patterns of hyperresponsiveness and hyporesponsiveness, relative to controls. No differences emerged for the sensory seeking domain. Some children within the high-risk group reported high scores across all three sensory modulation patterns. Regression analysis revealed that hyperresponsiveness predicted higher levels of negative affect. Conclusions/implications: This study is the first to report greater sensory modulation difficulties in children at familial risk of ADHD. Future research should establish whether children with sensory modulation and temperament difficulties in early childhood are more vulnerable to developing ADHD.
      220Scopus© Citations 3