Increase In Intelligence Quotient Research Articles

Teduglutide therapy in a child with short bowel syndrome

Introduction. Short bowel syndrome (SBS) in children is a rare disease. One of the most common etiological factors for the development of SBS in children is atresia of the small intestine. After surgical correction of the congenital anomaly, the remaining intestine attempts to increase absorption to restore homeostasis, and the process of intestinal adaptation begins. This process of adaptation can be assisted with analogues of endogenous growth factors of the intestine, such as teduglutide. Case outline. This report presents ? girl, aged two years and eight months, who had an estimated 20 cm of small intestine after surgical correction of congenital small bowel atresia and clinical signs of SBS. She was repeatedly hospitalized due to frequent need for parenteral correction of fluid, electrolyte, and nutrient imbalances. Stagnation in body weight and slow growth in body height were accompanied by weakened gross motor strength and slowed psychophysical development. After exploit conservative treatment measures, stimulation of intestinal adaptation was initiated with the drug teduglutide. After six months of drug therapy, progress was observed in body parameters, as well as an increase in intelligence quotient and motor abilities. Conclusion. SBS is a challenging entity for every clinician, and its previous therapy has mainly consisted of parenteral substitution of nutrients, fluids, and electrolytes. Surgical treatment carries the risk of loss of the remaining bowel and lifelong immunosuppression. The pharmacological possibilities of promoting intestinal adaptation using drugs such as teduglutide represent a light at the end of the tunnel for patients with SBS.

Examination of the Flynn effect in German patients with epilepsy assessed with the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) III and IV

The Flynn effect describes an increase in intelligence quotient (IQ) in the general population of about 3 points per decade. While this effect is well established in healthy individuals, research exploring the link to brain pathologies is scarce. We investigated the Flynn effect in a German sample of 203 patients with epilepsy with left, right, and bilateral lesions. Intelligence quotient values were obtained using the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scales (WAIS) III and IV. Our results showed a stable Flynn effect with nearly no difference in adjusted full scale IQ (FSIQ) scores (0.02 IQ points) between the WAIS-III and WAIS-IV samples. There were no significant interactions between the side of pathology and corrected IQ values. Our sample showed a tendency towards performing worse in the WAIS-IV in three out of four subscales independently of the Flynn effect, pointing out methodological differences between the newer Wechsler editions. However, although patients with bilateral lesions performed worst across all subscales, they exhibited a similar pattern as patients with lesions in the left or right hemisphere, indicating that also more severe forms of brain pathologies can profit from the mechanisms behind the Flynn effect.

A study on prevalence of minor physical anomalies in mentally retarded children in a tertiary care centre of India

Background: Paucity of studies in world literature and lack of any Indian study assessing the frequency, prevalence and severity of minor physical anomalies (MPAs) in children with mental retardation (MR) as well as their importance for prediction and timely recognition of mental insufficiency, if any.Methods: A cross-sectional observational study involving 273 mentally retarded children aged 5-18 years was conducted over a period of one year and were compared with their age and sex matched controls. Waldrop and Halverson (1971) physical anomaly scale was used to assess those MPAs.Results: In the study group, higher percentage (79.85% vs. 40.29%) of children had MPAs with a predominance of multiple MPAs in comparison to healthy children (40.29% and 0%, respectively). Higher average frequency of MPAs per child was noted in the study group (1.42) than control group (0.40). Mean Waldrop weighting score was significantly higher among mentally retarded children than their controls (3.7±0.8 versus 0.8±0.2, P<0.0001). Authors noticed a gradual and significant decrease in Waldrop score with increase in intelligence quotient (IQ) [F=175.72, P<0.001]. A significant strong negative correlation between Waldrop score and IQ level (r=-0.89, P<0.001) was also observed. Out of eighteen variables of Waldrop score, seven were found as significant in binary logistic regression model for MR. Our model can explain 37.6% to 50.1% variability of the MR.Conclusions: MPAs are more prevalent in mentally retarded children than healthy children. A clear-cut demarcation between these two groups is possible by the frequency of anomalies and the increased strength of their expression (i.e. their weighting scores).

A Combined Dietary and Cognitive Intervention in 3⁻5-Year-Old Children in Indonesia: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Early childhood nutritional interventions typically combine nutritional and psychosocial stimulation. Such combined interventions result in long-lasting improvements of cognitive abilities in children who are malnourished. Here, we investigated potential cognitive abilities in normally developing children in Indonesia who were, however, at risk for suboptimal cognitive development due to little psychosocial stimulation in their home environment. In a randomized controlled intervention, children of the experimental group received nutritional supplementation combined with cognitive stimulation. Pre- and post-intervention measurements included cognitive development and functioning, behavior, and mother–child interaction. The experimental and control group received nutritional supplementation in the form of a fortified or unfortified milk powder, respectively. Additionally, the children and parents of the experimental group jointly engaged in daily learning activities at home and performed iPad-based tasks designed to foster cognitive abilities. The experimental group compared to the control group displayed a significantly higher increase in intelligence quotient as well as a significantly larger reduction in attentional problems after the intervention. These results indicate that low-level cognitive stimulation in combination with nutritional supplementation during early childhood can be an effective intervention that improves global cognitive functioning in healthy developing children. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02359669.

Pregnancy outcome and intelligence at age five years

OBJECTIVE: Our purpose was to determine the influence of being small for gestational age at term and being preterm <34 weeks on cognitive functioning at age 5 years. STUDY DESIGN: Five hundred forty-six children of black low-income mothers, nearly all at risk for being small for gestational age, followed up prenatally with early ultrasonographic gestational age dating, were classified as either term appropriate for gestational age, term small for gestational age, or preterm at <34 weeks. At a mean of 5.5 ± 0.5 years, a Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence-Revised intelligence quotient test was administered. An intelligence quotient <70 was used to define mental retardation. Univariate and multivariate analyses adjusted for maternal age, smoking, education and language skills, home environment, and child gender and preschool attendance were performed. RESULTS: Term small-for-gestational-age and preterm infants at <34 weeks had 4 and 6 point intelligence quotient reductions compared with term appropriate-for-gestational-age infants. In the regression analyses these differences in intelligence quotient remained significant after confounders were adjusted. High maternal receptive language level (8 points), a positive home environment (5 points), and attendance at preschool (5 points) were each significantly associated with an increase in intelligence quotient. CONCLUSION: Both term small-for-gestational-age infants and those born at <34 weeks had a significantly lower mean intelligence quotient, and small-for-gestational-age infants had an increased risk of mental retardation at age 5 years. Higher maternal language skills, a positive home environment, and attendance at preschool each were associated with an increase in the mean intelligence quotient of 5 to 7 points. (Am J Obstet Gynecol 1996;175:1511-5.)

THE EFFECT OF TREATMENT ON THE MENTAL LEVEL OF PATIENTS WITH GENERAL PARESIS

1. Analysis of the psychometric determinations in 78 cases of general paresis shows that the change in intelligence quotient following treatment is relatively small in the majority of the cases, but there is a little greater likelihood for the intelligence rating to be increased than for it to fall. 2. The greatest increase in intelligence quotient occurred in those patients having an original quotient of between 60 and 90, and the great majority of the cases fell within this range. Patients with an originally relatively high or a very low rating are more likely to show a drop than a rise in the intelligence quotient following treatment. 3. There is suggestive evidence that the psychometric results are better in those patients who had, in the course of their treatment, fever combined with chemotherapy than those who had chemotherapy alone. 4. A comparison of the general clinical results with the psychometric results shows that the ability to return to work depends, in some degree, upon the final level of intelligence; and unless the final intelligence quotient reaches at least 70, the ability to be self-supporting is unlikely. It is also evident that if the original pre-treatment intelligence quotient is much below 70, the likelihood of restoring a patient to working efficiency is relatively slight. 5. It is probable that those patients who have a distinct decrease in their intelligence quotient prior to the beginning of treatment are unlikely to make a good clinical recovery. 6. Delusional trends, if they are well established, interfere with the clinical result even if the final intelligence quotient is high enough and near enough to the original level to presage a satisfactory result. 7. There is relatively little variance in psychometric results in the various mental pictures of the patients in this study, but the euphoric grandiose patients showed a little greater increase in the psychometric rating when this did occur. 8. The psychometric results do not parallel the changes in the spinal fluid, thus corroborating the well established experience that clinical outcome and spinal fluid results show no correlation. 9. If a change in the psychometric rating occurs, it becomes manifest within a few months after treatment, and the level remains relatively stable thereafter.