Monthly Archives: August 2010
Access to Information About Stuttering and Societal Knowledge of Stuttering
The purpose of this study was to examine societal knowledge of stuttering, access to information sources, and the influence of information sources on knowledge of stuttering. 185 participants from Northwest Ohio were surveyed. Results of the study indicated that the general public varies in their knowledge of stuttering and that majority of participants had not accessed information about stuttering, and the few who had, did so a long time ago. Finally, access to information sources had little influence on knowledge of stuttering. Implications for future research are discussed.
An Employment Interview Desensitization Program Addressing the Speech, Attitudes, and Avoidance Behaviors of People Who Stutter
Previous research suggests that people who stutter experience limitations when seeking employment due to their stuttering and/or subsequent avoidance behaviors. The current case study examined the efficacy of a therapy program designed to address the disfluent speech, negative attitudes, and avoidance behaviors displayed by people who stutter when preparing for and participating in an employment selection interview. Both quantitative and qualitative methods were used in the investigation. Results indicated that the participant made some positive gains in all three target areas. The significance of these findings is discussed.
Disfluency Characteristics Observed in Young Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Preliminary Report
This descriptive study evaluates the speech disfluencies of 8 verbal children between 3 and 5 years of age with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Speech samples were collected for each child during standardized interactions. Percentage and types of disfluencies observed during speech samples are discussed. Although they did not have a clinical diagnosis of stuttering, all of the young children with ASD in this study produced disfluencies. In addition to stuttering-like disfluencies and other typical disfluencies, the children with ASD also produced atypical disfluencies, which usually are not observed in children with typically developing speech or developmental stuttering. (Yairi & Ambrose, 2005).
Neural Control of Cross-language Asymmetry in the Bilingual Brain
Most bilinguals understand their second language more slowly than their first. This behavioral asymmetry may arise from the perceptual, phonological, lexicosemantic, or strategic components of bilingual word processing. However, little is known about the neural source of such language dominance and how it is regulated in the bilingual brain. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, we found that unconscious neural priming in bilingual word recognition is language nonselective in the left midfusiform gyrus but exhibits a preference for the dominant language in the left posterior middle temporal gyrus (MTG). These early-stage components of reading were located slightly upstream of the left midlateral MTG, which exhibited enhanced response during a conscious switch of language. Effective connectivity analysis revealed that this language switch is triggered by reentrant signals from inferior frontal cortex and not by bottom–up signals from occipitotemporal cortex. We further confirmed that magnetic stimulation of the same inferior frontal region interferes with conscious language control but does not disrupt unconscious priming by masked words. Collectively, our results demonstrate that the neural bottleneck in the bilingual brain is a cross-language asymmetry of form–meaning association in inferolateral temporal cortex, which is overcome by a top–down cognitive control for implementing a task schema in each language.
from Cerebral Cortex
Arc expression and neuroplasticity in primary auditory cortex during initial learning are inversely related to neural activity
Models of learning-dependent sensory cortex plasticity require local activity and reinforcement. An alternative proposes that neural activity involved in anticipation of a sensory stimulus, or the preparatory set, can direct plasticity so that changes could occur in regions of sensory cortex lacking activity. To test the necessity of target-induced activity for initial sensory learning, we trained rats to detect a low-frequency sound. After learning, Arc expression and physiologically measured neuroplasticity were strong in a high-frequency auditory cortex region with very weak target-induced activity in control animals. After 14 sessions, Arc and neuroplasticity were aligned with target-induced activity. The temporal and topographic correspondence between Arc and neuroplasticity suggests Arc may be intrinsic to the neuroplasticity underlying perceptual learning. Furthermore, not all neuroplasticity could be explained by activity-dependent models but can be explained if the neural activity involved in the preparatory set directs plasticity.
from the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
Implants and ethnocide: learning from the cochlear implant controversy
This paper uses the fictional case of the ‘Babel fish’ to explore and illustrate the issues involved in the controversy about the use of cochlear implants in prelinguistically deaf children. Analysis of this controversy suggests that the development of genetic tests for deafness poses a serious threat to the continued flourishing of Deaf culture. I argue that the relationships between Deaf and hearing cultures that are revealed and constructed in debates about genetic testing are themselves deserving of ethical evaluation. Making good policy about genetic testing for deafness will require addressing questions in political philosophy and anthropology about the value of culture and also thinking hard about what sorts of experiences and achievements make a human life worthwhile.
from Disability & Society
Using photography and art in concept mapping research with adults with dyslexia
Comorbidity of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and reading disorder (RD) is frequent. Comorbid subjects show a neuropsychological profile characterized by failure of various cognitive functions with an additive-effect that can determine more severe functional deficits. Comorbid RD may be a marker for a group of children with ADHD with more severe cognitive deficits, and a worse neuropsychological, academic, and behavioral outcome. The article focuses on the link between RD and ADHD from an epidemiological, genetic, neurofunctional, neuropsychological, and therapeutic perspective and summarizes the characteristics of the comorbid phenotype.
Comorbidity of ADHD and Dyslexia
Comorbidity of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and reading disorder (RD) is frequent. Comorbid subjects show a neuropsychological profile characterized by failure of various cognitive functions with an additive-effect that can determine more severe functional deficits. Comorbid RD may be a marker for a group of children with ADHD with more severe cognitive deficits, and a worse neuropsychological, academic, and behavioral outcome. The article focuses on the link between RD and ADHD from an epidemiological, genetic, neurofunctional, neuropsychological, and therapeutic perspective and summarizes the characteristics of the comorbid phenotype.
Neuropsychological Differences Among Children With Asperger Syndrome, Nonverbal Learning Disabilities, Attention Deficit Disorder, and Controls
Confusion is present as to possible diagnostic differences between Asperger syndrome (AS) and Nonverbal learning disabilities (NLD) and the relation of these disorders to attentional difficulties. Three-hundred and forty-five children participated in this study in 5 groups; NLD, AS, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD): Combined type, ADHD: Inattentive type, and controls. The NLD group showed particular difficulty on visual-spatial, visual-motor, and fluid reasoning measures compared to the other groups. There was also a significant verbal-performance IQ split in this group related to difficulty in social functioning. This study extends the findings from previous studies and extends these findings to differences between AS and NLD groups.
Does looped nasogastric tube feeding improve nutritional delivery for patients with dysphagia after acute stroke? A randomised controlled trial
looped NGT feeding improves delivery of feed and fluids and reduces NGT reinsertion with little additional cost.
from Age and Ageing
Independent Component Analysis of the Effect of L-dopa on fMRI of Language Processing
L-dopa, which is a precursor for dopamine, acts to amplify strong signals, and dampen weak signals as suggested by previous studies. The effect of L-dopa has been demonstrated in language studies, suggesting restriction of the semantic network. In this study, we aimed to examine the effect of L-dopa on language processing with fMRI using Independent Component Analysis (ICA). Two types of language tasks (phonological and semantic categorization tasks) were tested under two drug conditions (placebo and L-dopa) in 16 healthy subjects. Probabilistic ICA (PICA), part of FSL, was implemented to generate Independent Components (IC) for each subject for the four conditions and the ICs were classified into task-relevant source groups by a correlation threshold criterion. Our key findings include: (i) The highly task-relevant brain regions including the Left Inferior Frontal Gyrus (LIFG), Left Fusiform Gyrus (LFUS), Left Parietal lobe (LPAR) and Superior Temporal Gyrus (STG) were activated with both L-dopa and placebo for both tasks, and (ii) as compared to placebo, L-dopa was associated with increased activity in posterior regions, including the superior temporal area (BA 22), and decreased activity in the thalamus (pulvinar) and inferior frontal gyrus (BA 11/47) for both tasks. These results raise the possibility that L-dopa may exert an indirect effect on posterior regions mediated by the thalamus (pulvinar).
from PLoS ONE
When Ears Drive Hands: The Influence of Contact Sound on Reaching to Grasp
Altogether these findings offer a substantial contribution to the current debate about the type of object representations elicited by auditory stimuli and on the multisensory nature of the sensorimotor transformations underlying action.
from PLoS ONE
Multimodal predictors for Alzheimer disease in nonfluent primary progressive aphasia
Neither PPA phenotyping nor imaging alone is a reliable predictor of pathology. Multimodal predictors, such as combining neuropsychological testing with MRI analysis, can improve noninvasive prediction of underlying pathology in nonfluent forms of PPA.
from Neurology
Syndromes of nonfluent primary progressive aphasia
PPA with AOS is aligned with the syndrome previously designated progressive nonfluent aphasia; agrammatism may emerge as the syndrome evolves, or alternatively, the pure AOS group may be pathophysiologically distinct. PPA without AOS resembles the syndrome designated logopenic/phonologic aphasia; however, there is evidence for a distinct subsyndrome of GRN-associated aphasia. The findings provide a rationale for further longitudinal studies with pathologic correlation.
from Neurology
Why are patients with progressive nonfluent aphasia nonfluent?
Nonfluent speech in PNFA may be due in part to difficulty with grammatic processing associated with left inferior frontal and anterior-superior temporal disease.
from Neurology
