Abstract
Background: The neuropsychological tests and its subtests are composed of the motor planning task; simple reaction time task and the intradimensional/extradimensional shift (IED) task from the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB) were developed to examine specific components of cognition. The main objective of this study was to examine the reliability of these CANTAB subtests in pediatric patients with learning disabilities (LD) in Saudi Arabia. Methods: We administered the CANTAB subset test to 92 participants with LD and 68 controls with no LD. The tests performed were motor planning task (MOT), simple reaction time task (SRT) and the intradimensional/extradimensional shift (IED). Results: There was no significant age difference between the case and the control group (case: 9.2 ± 2.4 years versus controls: 9.0 ± 1.6 years, p=0.544). The IED and MOT were significantly longer among patients with LD versus control (p <0.001). LD cases had a longer SRT time than controls (cases: 1050.4 ± 626.5 versus controls: 815.5 ± 133.9, p=0.003). LD patients completed an average of 3.0 stages, than the controls, who were able to complete a mean of 8.4 IED stages (p<0.001). SRT was significantly longer in the case group (965.9 ± 716.4) compared to the controls (747.7 ± 120.7, p=0.014). LD cases made more errors in the motor screening tasks (MOT-Error) compared to the control group (case: 14.6 ± 4.5 versus controls: 12.4 ± 2.7, p<0.001). Conclusion: Patients with LD have poor CANTAB subtest results. If these CANTAB subtests do measure cognitive function, this adds to the accumulating evidence of cognitive impairment association in LD, and such studies should remain an active area of research.
Highlights
Cognitive impairment of executive dysfunctions (EFs) is very common in individuals diagnosed with learning disabilities (LD)1–3
Those with learning disabilities were able to complete an average of 3.0 stages, which was significantly lower than the controls, who were able to complete a mean of 8.4 intradimensional/extradimensional shift (IED) stages (p
The key observations in our study were that children with LD have impairments in shifting and flexibility of attention (IED), general alertness, correct responses & errors of commission and omission (SRT) and motor performance (MOT)
Summary
Cognitive impairment of executive dysfunctions (EFs) is very common in individuals diagnosed with learning disabilities (LD). There are a number of experimental studies showing EFs in individuals with LD disorders, across a wide range of functional levels and ages. These studies have reported that response inhibition, working memory, cognitive flexibility, planning, fluency and vigilance problems in these children. The neuropsychological tests and its subtests are composed of the motor planning task; simple reaction time task and the intradimensional/extradimensional shift (IED) task from the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB) were developed to examine specific components of cognition. The tests performed were motor planning task (MOT), simple reaction time task (SRT) and the intradimensional/extradimensional shift (IED). If these CANTAB subtests do measure cognitive function, this adds to the accumulating evidence of cognitive impairment association in LD, and such studies should remain an active area of research
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
