Neuropsy Open: e-journal in clinical neuropsychology

Neuropsy Open 1_2024

Laura Hokkanen — Wed, 27 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0200

Neuropsy Open 1_2024

From the editor 1_2024

Laura Hokkanen — Wed, 27 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0200

Käsillä on Neuropsy Open -verkkojulkaisun järjestyksessä yhdeksäs numero. Lehteä on toimitettu jo vuodesta 2020 alkaen tarkoituksena julkaista Neuropsykologian erikoispsykologikoulutuksessa laadittuja lopputöitä ja informoida lukijoita kiinnostavista yliopistojen piirissä ilmestyneistä alaan liittyvistä opinnäytetöistä.

Ensimmäinen artikkeli on Anna-Mari Auerin systemaattinen katsaus alhaisten veren rauta-arvojen yhteydestä ADHD-oireisiin lapsilla. Kirjallisuushaussa löytyi 12 originaalitutkimusta, joissa asetelmat vaihtelivat. ADHD-ryhmissä rauta-arvot todettiin pääosin merkitsevästi kontrolliryhmien arvoja alhaisemmiksi. Mukana oli yksi interventiotutkimus, jonka tulokset antoivat näyttöä rautalisän vaikutuksista ADHD-oireiden vähenemiseen. Tutkimuksia aiheesta tarvitaan kuitenkin lisää.

Toinen artikkeli on Satu Peitson katsaus, joka tarkastelee miten lasten kaksikielisyys on huomioitu tutkimuskirjallisuudessa teknisen lukutaidon interventiotutkimuksissa. Interventi-oista hyötymiseen olivat yhteydessä alkumittauksessa todetut vahvat fonologiset taidot sekä äidinkielen sujuva lukutaito. Tärkeäksi todettiin luki-valmiuksien sekä teknisen lukutaidon alkuarviointi ja edistymisen seuranta lapsen molemmilla kielillä.

Kolmas artikkeli on Päivi Ylikosken katsaus, jossa tarkastellaan lievän kehitysvammaisuuden ja laaja-alaisten oppimisvaikeuksien määritelmiä sekä kognitiivisten tutkimustulosten ja toimintakyvyn suhdetta. Erityisesti kokonaisälykkyysosamäärän merkitys diagnostiikassa nousee kriittiseen tarkasteluun.

Lopussa toimituksen poimintoina neljä väitöskirjaa (Johanna Nukari ja Emmi Pentikäinen Helsingin yliopistosta, Sherin Elsheikh Oulun yliopistosta ja Aino Yliranta Tampereen yliopistosta) ja neljä Helsingin yliopiston maisteritutkielmaa neuropsykologisista aiheista.

The role of iron deficiency in children with ADHD – a systematic review

Anna-Mari Auer — Wed, 27 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0200

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common developmental neuropsychiatric disorders among children and adolescents. Due to the prevalence of ADHD, there has been a vast interest in knowing its causes. One of the well-known factors involved in the development of ADHD is thought to be the neurotransmitter dopamine, which requires iron in order to be produced in the body. The purpose of this systematic literature review is to investigate the relationship between low iron levels (serum ferritin) and the symptoms of ADHD in children, as well as to study the differences between the different subtypes of ADHD in regards to iron deficiency in children. For this literature review, 12 articles that fit the entry criteria were found. Some of the researches used a setting of study and control groups while others compared the participants within the same experimental group. There was one intervention study as well. Regardless of the diversity of the study design, the researches provided consistent results: the levels of ferritin were significantly lower in the ADHD study groups than in the control groups. Due to the small number of intervention studies, it is not possible to draw very precise conclusions about the quality of the relationship between these two factors; however, there is some evidence of the effect of iron supplements on decreasing the symptoms of ADHD. Differences between the subtypes of ADHD in relation to iron deficiency were not found, but hyperactivity and impulsivity can be seen to be directly related to iron deficiency in children. Based on the results, it seems that discovering and treating iron deficiency as part of the diagnosis of ADHD is important, especially with children presenting symptoms of hyperactivity.

Reading interventions in bilinguals: a systematic literacy review

Satu Peitso — Wed, 27 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0200

This literature review focused on children’s bilingualism in the research literature of technical literacy intervention studies. The main goal was to find perspectives to be utilized in neuropsychological rehabilitation, map the content and effectiveness of interventions for reading difficulties in bilingual children and the effect of cross-linguistic transfer.

Based on the keywords and admission criteria, six studies were selected for the review. The studies focused on children under school age and primary school age. The native language of the participants varied, and the second language was English. The results, duration and content of the interventions varied. Five of the studies found an intervention effect on reading ability or reading accuracy in the target language. The publications had qualitative weaknesses, and the generalizability of the results should be treated with caution. The benefits of the interventions were related to the stronger phonological skills found in the initial measurement and the reading fluency in the mother tongue. The interventions did not show effects on second language reading fluency. Regarding the cross-linguistic transfer effect, the results could not be reliably estimated.

Early support for second language reading skills and technical literacy even before strong oral proficiency in the second language can produce positive results. Fluency in the mother tongue does not rule out reading difficulties in another language, but rehabilitation responses to reading interventions in the second language may be more favorable. It is important to initially assess reading skills and technical literacy, and to monitor progress in both languages, so that slow-developing bilingual children can be directed to more effective support and rehabilitation at an earlier stage. The language skills of bilingual children at risk for reading difficulties should be assessed more widely and support should be tailored to individual needs.

Mild intellectual disability or borderline intellectual functioning – cognitive assessment and evaluation of functional abilities in differential diagnostics.

Päivi Ylikoski — Wed, 27 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0200

The diagnosis of mild intellectual disability has not been defined precisely and comprehensively for clinical practice. The purpose of this literature review is to point out factors that should be considered in diagnostic decisions. The research questions are: What is the significance of cognitive assessment performed by a psychologist when diagnosing mild intellectual disability? What is the relation between cognitive test performance and functional abilities?

Scientific articles considering the definitions of mild intellectual disability and borderline intellectual functioning are examined in the review. The relation between cognitive assessment performance and the related diagnostics is also clarified. A particular question that rises is the significance of Full Scale Intellectual Quotient (FSIQ). FSIQ is still a part of the diagnostic criteria (ICD10), but its significance in clinical work is decreasing. The scientific articles examined in the literature review are critical about FSIQ's weight as a diagnostic criterion. Versatile examination of cognitive abilities and consideration of performance profiles are emphasized instead. Executive functioning in particular has a great significance when considering individual support needs. FSIQ is related to functional abilities on a group level but it does not have a causal relation to individual functional skills. The review also examines practical standpoints that give valuable insight to how cognitive profiles and abilities should be examined in diagnostic work.

Toimituksen valinnat 1_2024

Hanna Jokinen-Salmela, Sanna Koskinen, Annamari Tuulio-Henriksson — Wed, 27 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0200

Toimituksen valinnat on Neuropsy Open-lehden vakiopalsta, jossa toimituksen jäsenet nostavat esiin kliiniseen neuropsykologian alaan liittyviä viimeaikaisia väitöskirjoja ja pro gradu-tutkielmia.