Biomedical subjects

J Donders

Publications and source records attributed to J Donders.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

PubMed1999

Prediction of neurobehavioral outcome 1-5 years post pediatric traumatic head injury.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the neurobehavioral status of children with traumatic head injury (THI) and to identify variables that predict outcome. DESIGN: Retrospective chart review, with follow-up 1-5 years after injury. Outcome predictor variables were identified through stepwise regression analysis. SETTING: Level one trauma center and pediatric rehabilitation program. PATIENTS: 71 Children with THI, selected from a four-year series of consecutive admissions. MEASURE: Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales-Survey Edition. RESULTS: Significant predictors of better neurobehavioral status at follow-up included absence of a premorbid learning problem (p <.01), older age at injury (p <.01), and normal pupillary response (p <.001) and higher cerebral perfusion pressure (p <.0001) during critical care management. CONCLUSIONS: Neurobehavioral outcome after THI is influenced by premorbid psychosocial variables as well as by critical care management.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMed1999

Performance on the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test after traumatic brain injury.

The performance of 100 patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) on the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) was examined to determine the underlying latent structure as well as profile subtypes. Exploratory factor analysis with oblique rotation identified three factors: response accuracy, learning, and failure to maintain set. Marker variables from each factor were then included in a two-stage cluster analysis, which identified two reliable subtypes. Level of performance differences between these subtypes were meaningfully related to both demographic background and length of coma. It is concluded that interpretation of the WCST results of patients with TBI should consider the multifactorial nature of the instrument in combination with injury severity characteristics and demographic variables.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1999

Latent structure of the Children's Category Test at two age levels in the standardization sample.

The latent structure of the Children's Category Test (CCT; Boll, 1993) was evaluated in the standardization sample, with separate principal factor analyses for the younger subgroup (ages 5-8 years; CCT-1) and the older subgroup (ages 9-16 years; CCT-2). At both age levels, a two-factor solution was found. It is concluded that the CCT is a multifactorial instrument, and that clinical interpretation should consider the diversity of dimensions assessed by this test.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1998

The performance of children with traumatic head injury on the wide range assessment of memory and learning-screening.

The factor structure of the Screening version of the Wide Range Assessment of Memory and Learning (WRAML-S; Sheslow & Adams, 1990) was evaluated in the standardization sample and in a sample of 100 children with traumatic head injury (THI). A two-factor model (including verbal and nonverbal dimensions) fit the standardization data relatively best, but a one-factor model was supported in the THI sample. In the latter sample, the WRAML-S Memory Screening Index (MSI) correlated just as strongly with length of coma as did Performance IQ. Presence of diffuse lesions or right cerebral focal lesions was associated with lower MSI scores. Children with severe THI had significantly lower MSI scores than did children with mild or moderate injuries. We conclude that MSI is an adequate screening measure of immediate recall after severe THI, but we suggest caution against exclusive reliance on this measure in clinical pediatric neuropsychological evaluations.

Journal Article↗

PubMed1998

Performance discrepancies between the Children's Category Test (CCT) and the California Verbal Learning Test-Children's (CVLT-C) Version in the standardization sample.

Standardization data for the Children's Category Test (CCT) and California Verbal Learning Test-Children's Version (CVLT-C) were used to evaluate covariances and statistically significant discrepancies between the T scores of those instruments, as well as the base rate of specific discrepancies. The results indicate that the CCT and CVLT-C share only a limited amount of common variance and that statistically significant discrepancies between the respective T scores are actually quite common. It is suggested that evaluation of the potential clinical significance of a discrepancy between the obtained results of these two instruments in individual cases should include consideration of the presented base rates.

Child↗

PubMed1996

Susac's syndrome: neuropsychological characteristics in a young man.

A 29-year-old man developed vertigo, diplopia, confusion and spasticity. Brain biopsy revealed multifocal microinfarcts. Bilateral hearing loss and retinal microangiopathy were also noted. Deficits were stable years after onset. Repeated neuropsychological testing was suggestive of diffuse cerebral dysfunction, with likely prominent involvement of reciprocal diencephalic-cortical projections.

Adult↗

PubMed1996

Validity of short forms of the intermediate Halstead Category Test in children with traumatic brain injury.

The validities of three of Reeder and Boll's (1992) short forms of the intermediate version of the Halstead Category Test (IHCT) were evaluated in a sample of 87 children with traumatic brain injury. All three short forms had acceptable relationships with length of coma. A short form that was based on the first 15 items of every IHCT subtest appeared to be relatively superior to the other forms in terms of discriminating between groups of mild/moderate vs. severe injuries. It was concluded that this short form may be an accurate and valid alternative to the full-length IHCT in children with traumatic brain injury.

Journal Article↗

PubMed1993

Factor structure of the WISC-R in children with traumatic brain injury.

The factor structure of the WISC-R was examined in a sample of 108 children with traumatic brain injury. Principal factor analysis of 11 WISC-R subtests yielded three factors, which were subjected to varimax rotation. The rotated factor pattern suggested the existence of a Verbal Comprehension factor, a Perceptual Organization factor, and a somewhat weaker third factor. The meaning and implications of this third factor are discussed.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1992

Validity of the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children when employed with children with traumatic brain injury.

The K-ABC and WISC-R were administered to 43 children with traumatic brain injury. The amount of shared variance between standard score indices of these two tests ranged from 42% to 71%, depending on which scores were considered. Correlations with degree of cerebral impairment, as measured by length of coma, were slightly higher for WISC-R IQ scores than for K-ABC global scale scores. Performance on both the K-ABC and the WISC-R was affected by the presence or absence of ocular and/or motor deficits. It is concluded that the K-ABC is not superior to the WISC-R in sensitivity to cerebral impairment and that caution is needed when one is making neuropsychological interpretations on the basis of the K-ABC.

Analysis of Variance↗

PubMed1992

Validity of two short forms of the WISC-R in children with traumatic brain injury.

The validities of Kaufman's (1976) four-subtest short form and Kennedy and Elder's (1982) five-subtest short form for the WISC-R were evaluated in 98 children with traumatic brain injury. Both forms correlated highly with actual WISC-R FSIQ, and both forms had acceptable relationships to measures of injury severity. However, the Kaufman method had a larger standard error of measurement than did the Kennedy and Elder method, and the Kaufman method tended to overestimate actual FSIQ. It was concluded that the Kennedy and Elder short form for the WISC-R may be a relatively more accurate predictor of actual FSIQ in children with traumatic brain injury.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1992

Premorbid behavioral and psychosocial adjustment of children with traumatic brain injury.

The premorbid adjustment of 85 six- to sixteen-year-old children with traumatic brain injury was assessed by means of standardized rating forms that were completed by the children's parents and teachers. Parents and teachers were in moderate agreement when rating children's premorbid functioning. Less than 11% of the children appeared to have premorbid disturbances. Premorbid adjustment did not appear to be clearly related to injury severity or to type of injury. It is concluded that premorbid behavioral and psychosocial factors are not strongly related to the incidence of traumatic brain injury in a sample of children with predominantly relatively severe injuries.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMed1992

Emotional adjustment of children with hydrocephalus and of their parents.

Emotional and behavioral adjustment after infantile hydrocephalus were investigated. Children's and parents' adjustments were assessed by means of questionnaires (PIC-R, SCL-90-R) in a sample of 48 children with shunted hydrocephalus. The PIC-R patterns of the children were mostly reflective of their anomalous physical and cognitive development, but there was no evidence for a specific "hydrocephalic personality" pattern. Discriminant analyses revealed that there were no strong relationships between distress of the parents (as assessed by the SCL-90-R) and a variety of physical and psychosocial variables, despite the fact that many parents were significantly distressed. It was concluded that the majority of children with hydrocephalus do not present with a specific psychiatric profile, that clinically significant levels of distress are quite common in their parents, and that such distress is typically not related to the hydrocephalus per se.

Child↗

PubMed1991

Neuropsychological functioning of hydrocephalic children.

A group of 30 five- to eight-year-old hydrocephalic children was administered a comprehensive battery of neuropsychological tests. As a group, they displayed a pattern of lower PIQ than VIQ. Their performance was within the average range of many neuropsychological tests, but they performed poorly on some measures of complex visuospatial functioning. It is concluded that hydrocephalic children at this early age exhibit relatively reduced efficiency in processing complex or novel nonverbal stimuli. The possibility of dysfunction in the posterior regions of the right cerebral hemisphere is discussed.

Brain Damage, Chronic↗

PubMed1990

Psychometric intelligence after infantile hydrocephalus. A critical review and reinterpretation.

Methodological issues in research concerning intellectual sequelae of infantile hydrocephalus are reviewed, and a multivariate statistical approach to this problem is proposed and exemplified. The significance of a variety of medical history variables with regard to psychometric intelligence was assessed in a sample of 5- to 8-year-old children who had been shunted in the 1st year of life. Stepwise discriminant analyses revealed that many medical history variables were neutral with regard to intellectual outcome (as assessed by performance on psychometric tests). The presence of additional medical problems in infancy, as well as current ocular defects, were the most significant variables that were associated with a high likelihood of mental retardation. Implications for further research are discussed.

Cerebrospinal Fluid Shunts↗

PubMed1986

Processing of sentences in aphasia as assessed by eye-movement recordings.

The eye-movements of nine aphasic and nine nonaphasic control patients were recorded while they were looking at slides, containing eight words, selected from four different linguistic categories (nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs). The task was to construct a 4-word sentence. The aphasic patients produced fewer syntactically and semantically correct sentences. Both aphasics and controls used more nouns than adverbs in their sentences. The eye-movement patterns revealed no statistically significant differences between the two groups in terms of fixation time per word category or in terms of fixation time per visual hemispace. Implications for a linguistic theory of sentence processing are discussed.

Aged↗

PubMed1984

Eye-movement patterns in disabled readers at two age levels: a test of Bakker's balance model.

The eye-movement patterns of good and poor readers at two age levels during slide-presented reading, arithmetic and perceptual-closure tasks were compared. Older dyslexics were deficient in reading and arithmetic, but performed well on perceptual-closure tasks. Younger dyslexics were deficient on all tasks. Both younger good readers and older poor readers appeared to use a right-hemispheric reading strategy, while older dyslexics appeared to show a left-hemispheric approach. Younger dyslexics did not exhibit any strategy at all. Implications for Bakker's balance model of dyslexia and for subtypes research in dyslexia are discussed.

Age Factors↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Bereavement and mourning in pediatric rehabilitation settings.

Developmental changes in children's acquisition of death concepts and in their emotional reactions are reviewed. Moderating variables that may affect the nature of grieving processes after parental or sibling death are discussed, including circumstances of the loss, prior experience with death, and the child's cognitive functioning. Pragmatic issues (such as when and how to inform children of parental or sibling death) regarding bereavement and mourning in children with acquired brain injuries are reviewed and illustrated by means of case studies. Special challenges to rehabilitation professionals who must deal with these issues (including the concurrent treatment of secondary losses, cognitive deficits, and organic personality changes) are discussed.

Attitude to Death↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Assessment of speed of processing after paediatric head trauma: need for better norms.

The neuropsychological test scores of 47 children with traumatic head injury (THI), aged 9-14 years, were evaluated to determine the relative contributions of severity of injury (length of coma) and age on performance. Stepwise regression analyses revealed that age consistently explained a statistically significant proportion of the variance on the Trail Making Test (TMT) and Finger Tapping Test (FTT), even after accounting for injury severity. However, logistic regression analyses indicated that currently available age-based norms for these tests did not improve classification of mild-moderate vs. severe injuries, as compared to a system based exclusively on raw scores. It is concluded that, whereas age is an important consideration when assessing children with THI, available age-based norms for some common paediatric neuropsychological tests do not appear to be sufficiently stratified or robust to fully capture these age effects. It is suggested that more comprehensive age-referenced norms, based on larger and more adequately stratified samples, are needed. In addition, some practical implications of these findings are discussed.

Adolescent↗