Processing Difficulties In Children Research Articles

Association between hallucinations and sensory processing difficulties in children and adolescents.

Hallucinations are serious symptoms that can lead to high levels of distress, functional impairment, and increased risk of suicide in both adults and children. However, their etiology and treatment remain unclear. Hallucinations and sensory processing difficulties (SPDs) are associated with various psychiatric disorders, including mood, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder. This study aimed to investigate the potential association between hallucinations and SPDs in a pediatric population. We conducted a cross-sectional study with 335 children aged 6-18 years who visited the child psychiatry outpatient clinic at Osaka Metropolitan University Hospital between April 2020 and March 2023 and continued treatment for at least three months. After excluding those with intellectual disabilities or uncontrolled epilepsy, 304 participants were included in the analyses. The presence of hallucinations was assessed through interviews with the children and their parents. SPDs were evaluated using the Short Sensory Profile. Binomial logistic regression analysis was conducted to assess the association between hallucinations and SPDs, adjusting for age, sex, autism spectrum disorder, socioeconomic difficulties (low-income, single-parent households), and the presence of mood and anxiety disorders. Hallucinations were present in 64 children (21%). Logistic regression analysis showed a significant positive association between SPDs and hallucinations, even after adjusting for age, sex, autism spectrum disorder, socioeconomic difficulties, and the presence of mood and anxiety disorders (odds ratio, 1.02; 95% CI, 1.008-1.036; p = 0.002). The results of this study suggest a potential association between hallucinations and SPDs in pediatric patients. Further prospective studies are needed to explore the causal relationship between these factors and determine whether interventions for SPDs can alleviate hallucinations in children.

33.3 Understanding Sensory Processing Difficulties in Children and Adolescents With ASD

33.3 Understanding Sensory Processing Difficulties in Children and Adolescents With ASD

Odnos između sposobnosti slušnog procesiranja i akademskog postignuća dece osnovnoškolskog uzrasta

Aim. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of auditory processing difficulties in children and to examine possible relationships between auditory processing skills and school success. Method. In this study, a screening test Auditory processing disorder - (Croatian: PSP - 1) was used to determine the prevalence of auditory processing difficulties in elementary school children in Croatia. Furthermore, correlations between screening test, grade point average, and subjective assessment scores for reading, writing, and math were analyzed. A total of 412 participants from mainstream schools were grouped based on their chronological age and grade. Results. The findings revealed that 12 (approximately 2.9%) participants exhibited difficulties in the assessed auditory processing tasks, which is consistent with data from other studies indicating that between 2% and 5% of children have an auditory processing disorder. Specifically, the two auditory tasks involving dichotic listening proved to be the most challenging for all participants. The results indicated that students' academic performance, as measured by grade point average and teachers' ratings of students' academic and language skills, was poorer in students having pronounced auditory processing difficulties when compared to their same-grade peers. Teacher ratings were significantly correlated with screening test scores, whereas students grade average was not. Conclusions. The analysis also revealed that screening total scores were significantly positively correlated with teachers' ratings of students' reading, writing, and mathematical skills. These skills also correlated highly with students' average grades. These findings corroborate the notion that auditory processing deficits are inversely correlated with academic achievement, warranting further research into the diagnosis and management of Auditory processing difficulties.

Utility of the Questionnaire on Children’s Processing of Sensory Input in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

In addition to difficulties with social communication and behaviour flexibility, children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often experience difficulty responding to sensory input. Our aim was to assess the sensitivity of the Questionnaire on Children’s Processing of Sensory Input to sensory issues experienced by children with ASD. Based on the responses of 108 parents of neurotypical children and 27 parents of children with ASD (3 to 10 years), we found that the questionnaire differentiated well between the groups. The questionnaire may be used by health, education or social services professionals and represents a novel tool for recognizing sensory processing difficulties in children. Information gained from it can help plan additional supports for children with sensory challenges.

Sensory Processing in Children and Adolescents with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Objective: The aim is to assess the sensory processing difficulties in children and adolescents with ADHD. Methods: In all, 38 ADHD children of the age group 6–14 years and 34 age- and gender-matched typically developing controls were included in the study. Sensory processing was assessed on Child Sensory Profile-2. The child behavior checklist and Weiss functional impairment rating scale were applied to assess behavioral problems and functional impairments, respectively. Results: A significantly higher sensory processing difficulties were seen in children with ADHD than typically developing controls. There were positive correlations between the scores of Child sensory profile 2 with internalizing (with Sensitivity p = .036, Avoiding p = .001, and Auditory p = .029) and externalizing T scores (with Seeking p = .031, Movement p = .025, and Visual p = .018) of CBCL and also with scores of Weiss functional impairment rating scale (with Seeking p = .001, Sensitivity p = .019, and Registration p = .045). Conclusions: Sensory problems were common in children with ADHD and add to the functional impairments.

Sensory Processing Difficulties in Children and Adolescents with Obsessive-Compulsive and Anxiety Disorders

Altered sensory processing has been linked to symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and anxiety disorders (ADs) in youth, but few studies have examined sensory processing in clinical samples and no study has analyzed self-report data from youth meeting diagnostic criteria for OCD or ADs. This study included 86 youth with OCD, 82 youth with ADs, and 46 youth without psychiatric disorders. Participants completed the adolescent version of the Sensory Profile and scales measuring three symptom dimensions of OCD, four symptom dimensions of anxiety, and symptoms of major depression. Results showed that different forms of sensory processing difficulties (sensitivity, avoidance, low registration) were adequately captured by one broad sensory processing factor. Youth with OCD and ADs reported statistically significantly more sensory difficulties than youth without psychiatric disorders, but the two clinical groups did not differ from each other. Altered sensory processing in the clinical groups was not explained by the presence of neurodevelopmental disorders. Sensory difficulties were moderately to strongly related to all self-reported symptom dimensions, and uniquely related to the OCD dimension of symmetry/ordering and the anxiety dimensions of panic and social anxiety. Most youth in the clinical groups were classified as having difficulties with sensory processing. The present study shows that sensory processing difficulties are common in youth with OCD and ADs, not explained by co-occurring neurodevelopmental disorders, and linked to a host of internalizing symptoms. More research is needed to identify whether sensory processing difficulties precede, follow, or mutually reinforce the development of OCD and ADs in youth.

The relationship between communication skills, sensory difficulties, and anxiety in children with autism spectrum disorder

BackgroundDespite the high prevalence of communicational differences, anxiety, and sensory processing difficulties in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), little is known about the nature of their experiences. Thus, the present study aimed to explore the correlation between communication skills, sensory difficulties, and anxiety in children with ASD. Fifty-three children with ASD (Mage = 8.51, SD = 2.51; males = 42) were recruited. The Persian version of the Short Sensory Profile (SSP), the Children’s Communication Checklist (CCC), and the Spence Children’s Anxiety Scale (SCAS) was used to assess the variables.ResultsThe overall sensory score of children with ASD was significantly and positively correlated with most of the communication skills (P < 0.05). The overall sensory score of children with ASD was significantly and negatively correlated with all anxiety subsets of these children (P < 0.05). The social relationships score of children with ASD had a significant and negative correlation with all subsets of anxiety and a significant and positive correlation with all sensory subsets (P < 0.05). The total score of communication was significantly and negatively related to all subsets of anxiety except separation anxiety (P < 0.05).ConclusionsSensory processing difficulties in ASD children appear to be significantly associated with communication skills and anxiety acts as a mediator between the two.

Visual processing difficulties in children with NF1. A common but not widely recognized underlying cause of reading difficulties

Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) is one of the most frequent multi-systemic autosomal dominant rare genetic disorder with an incidence as high as 1/2000 and prevalence of 1/3000 births. NF1 is caused by pathogenic variants of the NF1 gene located on chromosome 17q11.2 [ [1] Ottenhoff M.J. Rietman A.B. Mous S.E. Plasschaert E. Gawehns D. Brems H. Oostenbrink R. Van Minkelen R. Nellist M. Schorry E. Legius E. Moll H.A. Elgersma Y. Examination of the genetic factors underlying the cognitive variability associated with neurofibromatosis type 1. Genet. Med. 2020; 22: 889-897https://doi.org/10.1038/s41436-020-0752-2 Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (16) Google Scholar ]. Of the affected individuals, 50% have a sporadic disease which causes challenges for early diagnosis. Up to 80% of children aged 6–18 years with NF1 present with moderate to severe impairment in one or more areas of cognitive functioning, and they are among the most important NF1 manifestations during school age [ [2] Johansson E. Kallionpää Böckerman P. Peltonen J. Peltonen S. A rare disease and education: neurofibriomatosis type 1 decreases educational attainment. Clin. Genet. 2021; 99: 529-539 Crossref PubMed Scopus (6) Google Scholar , [3] Van der Vaart T. Plasschaert E. Rietman A.B. Renard M. Oostenbrink R. Vogels A. de Wit M.C.Y. Descheemaeker M. Vergouwe Y. Catsman-Berrevoets C.E. Legius E. Elgersma Y. Moll H.A. Simvastatin for cognitive deficits and behavioural problems in patients with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1-SIMCODA): a randomised, placebo-controlled trial. Lancet Neurol. 2013; 12: 1076-1083 Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (90) Google Scholar ]. The average intelligence quotient (IQ) is 10–15 points lower in these children than in population or sibling control groups. Learning disabilities in reading, writing and mathematics have been reported in about 50% of children [ [2] Johansson E. Kallionpää Böckerman P. Peltonen J. Peltonen S. A rare disease and education: neurofibriomatosis type 1 decreases educational attainment. Clin. Genet. 2021; 99: 529-539 Crossref PubMed Scopus (6) Google Scholar ]. Furthermore, achievements may be undermined by attention-deficit–hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), difficulties in social functioning associated with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and motor difficulties [ 2 Johansson E. Kallionpää Böckerman P. Peltonen J. Peltonen S. A rare disease and education: neurofibriomatosis type 1 decreases educational attainment. Clin. Genet. 2021; 99: 529-539 Crossref PubMed Scopus (6) Google Scholar , 3 Van der Vaart T. Plasschaert E. Rietman A.B. Renard M. Oostenbrink R. Vogels A. de Wit M.C.Y. Descheemaeker M. Vergouwe Y. Catsman-Berrevoets C.E. Legius E. Elgersma Y. Moll H.A. Simvastatin for cognitive deficits and behavioural problems in patients with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1-SIMCODA): a randomised, placebo-controlled trial. Lancet Neurol. 2013; 12: 1076-1083 Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (90) Google Scholar , 4 Krab L.C. Aarsen F.K. de Goede-Bolder A. Catsman-Berrevoets C.E. Arts W.F.A. Moll H.A. Elgersma Y. Impact of neurofibromatosis type 1 on school performance. J. Child Neurol. 2008; 23: 1002-1010 Crossref PubMed Scopus (93) Google Scholar ]. Cognitive and behavioural deficits lead to lower academic achievement and loss of quality of life, persisting into adulthood [ [2] Johansson E. Kallionpää Böckerman P. Peltonen J. Peltonen S. A rare disease and education: neurofibriomatosis type 1 decreases educational attainment. Clin. Genet. 2021; 99: 529-539 Crossref PubMed Scopus (6) Google Scholar ]. 40% of children with NF1 need special education and only approximately 10% of children with NF1 do not have any problems with school performance and also do not need remedial teaching [ [4] Krab L.C. Aarsen F.K. de Goede-Bolder A. Catsman-Berrevoets C.E. Arts W.F.A. Moll H.A. Elgersma Y. Impact of neurofibromatosis type 1 on school performance. J. Child Neurol. 2008; 23: 1002-1010 Crossref PubMed Scopus (93) Google Scholar ].

Associations Between Chronic Irritability and Sensory Processing Difficulties in Children and Adolescents.

Irritability is one of the most common reasons for which children and adolescents are referred for psychiatric evaluation and care. However, clinical irritability is difficult to define; thus, its prevalence varies widely. Chronic irritability may be associated with sensory processing difficulties (SPD), but little is known about the relationship between these two factors in clinical populations. In this study, we examined the prevalence of chronic irritability and its association with SPD in 166 children aged 5–16 years who were referred to the psychiatric outpatient clinic of the Osaka City University Hospital. Chronic irritability and parent-reported scores for the Short Sensory Profile, Infant Behavior Checklist-Revised, Child Behavior Checklist, and Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Age Children (Present and Lifetime version) questionnaires were used for assessment. A total of 22 children (13.2%) presented with chronic irritability (i.e., the irritability group) and were more likely to have oppositional defiant disorder, externalizing problems, and attention issues than those without chronic irritability (i.e., the control group). SPD were reported in eight (36%) patients in the irritability group and in 21 (15%) in the control group (p = 0.029). Moreover, compared to the control group, the irritability group showed a significant difference in almost all items of the Short Sensory Profile. Chronic irritability was associated with more severe overall SPD, even after adjusting for possible confounding factors (internalizing and externalizing problems, age, sex, and low income). We provide evidence to support our hypothesis that chronic irritability is associated with SPD in children and adolescents. Therefore, SPD should be assessed to provide appropriate interventions in children and adolescents with chronic irritability.

Sensory Processing in Williams Syndrome: Individual differences and changes over time

This study examined individual differences as well as the development of sensory processing difficulties in children with Williams syndrome (WS) using a cross-sectional (Experiment 1) and longitudinal design (Experiment 2). In Experiment 1, a clustering approach of sensory processing scores suggested two groups. Experiment 2 showed that the clusters identified in Experiment 1 were not stable across development, especially for those with high sensory impairments at either time point. Yet, most children experienced high impairments in sensory registration at both time points, suggesting impaired registration is a core phenotype of sensory processing in children with WS across development. Possible mechanisms, limitations and implications are discussed.

Sex differences in sensory processing in children with autism spectrum disorder

Despite the high prevalence of sensory processing difficulties in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), little research has focused on the sex differences in sensory processing. Furthermore, there is a lack of knowledge on the female‐specific symptoms of ASD, contributing to later referral, diagnosis and intervention. In this study, we examined the sex differences in sensory processing symptoms in large cohorts of ASD children (N = 168; 26 females, 142 males) and typically developing (TD) children (N = 439; 209 females, 230 males). For this, we translated the sensory processing measure (SPM) and SPM – Preschool (SPM‐P) Home Forms to French. The SPM/SPM‐P are parent/caregiver questionnaires that assess typical behavioral responses to sensory stimuli. Overall, our results showed that the magnitude of the differences in sensory processing between males and females is larger in ASD children relative to TD children, with females showing more severe symptoms in Hearing, as well as Balance and Motion subscales. Additionally, linear discriminant analysis showed that the SPM/SPM‐P are good at discriminating TD children from ASD, children with higher accuracy rates for females than for males. These findings are discussed in light of the heterogeneity of sensory processing difficulties present in ASD. Overall, our results suggest that there seem to be female‐specific profiles in sensory processing difficulties in ASD. Implications of findings concerning sex differences in sensory processing and their potential for improving identification and diagnosis of ASD females are discussed.Lay SummaryThe present study examined sex differences in behavioral responses to sensory stimuli in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and typically developing (TD) children. While there is a small trend for TD males to show more sensory processing atypicalities, female ASD children show significantly more atypical responses compared to their male counterparts. This has important implications for characterizing female autism profiles, and ultimately improving the chance for earlier detection, diagnosis and treatment.

Magnitude processing in populations with spina-bifida: The role of visuospatial and working memory processes

People with Spina Bifida usually experience difficulties with mathematics. In a series of other developmental disorders, a magnitude processing deficit was considered to be the main source of subsequent difficulties in mathematics. The processing of magnitude could be numerical (which is the larger number) or non-numerical such as spatial (e.g., which is the longer?) or temporal (which one last longer?) for instance. However, no study yet has examined directly magnitude processes in a population with Spina Bifida. On the other hand, recent studies in people with genetic syndromes have suggested that visuospatial and working memory processes play an important role in magnitude processing, including number magnitude. Therefore, in this study we explored for the first time magnitude representation using several tasks with different visuospatial and working memory processing requirements, cognitive skills frequently impaired in Spina Bifida. Results showed children with SB presented a global magnitude processing deficit for non-numerical and numerical comparison tasks, but not in symbolic number magnitude tasks compared to controls. Importantly, visuospatial skills and working memory abilities could partially explain the differences between groups in comparison and estimation tasks. This study proposes that magnitude processing difficulties in children with SB could be due to higher cognitive factors such as visuospatial and working memory processes.

Speech evoked auditory brainstem responses in children with learning disability

&lt;p class="abstract"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Background:&lt;/strong&gt; Learning disabilities are characterized by significant impairments in acquisition of reading, spelling or arithmetic skills. A growing number of studies have used speech sounds to assess auditory processing to linguistic elements in children with learning disability. The present study seeks to report whether speech evoked Auditory Brainstem Responses can be used as a biological marker of deficient sound encoding in children with learning disability. The study aims to establish relationship between click evoked auditory brainstem responses (ABR) and speech evoked ABR in children with learning disability; to report whether speech evoked auditory brainstem responses can be used as a biological marker of deficient sound encoding in children with learning disability.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="abstract"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Methods:&lt;/strong&gt; Pure tone audiometry, immitance audiometery, click and speech evoked brainstem responses were obtained in 25 children diagnosed with learning disability and the data was compared with the responses in the control group. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="abstract"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Results:&lt;/strong&gt; Statistical differences were seen in speech recognition threshold, speech discrimination scores, latencies and amplitude of speech evoked auditory brainstem responses between control and study group. This poor representation of significant components of speech sounds in children with learning disability could be due to synaptic efficacy distortion and poor synaptic transmission. Other reasons may be activation of fewer auditory nerve fibres in the auditory brainstem in response to speech stimulus.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="abstract"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Conclusions:&lt;/strong&gt; The speech evoked auditory brainstem responses can serve as an efficient tool in identifying underlying auditory processing difficulties in children with learning disability and can help in early intervention.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="abstract"&gt; &lt;/p&gt;

Sensory processing in children with autism spectrum disorder and the mental health of primary caregivers

BackgroundSensory processing difficulties, which commonly occur in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), are expected to have negative effects on the primary caregiver’s mental health. The aim of this study was to examine the association between sensory processing difficulties in children with ASD and the mental health of primary caregivers. MethodsA total of 707 primary caregivers (mothers in the present study) and their children with ASD (4–18 years of age) participated in this study. Sensory processing difficulties were indexed using the Short Sensory Profile (SSP). The mental health of primary caregivers was indexed using the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ12). ResultsHigher scores on Auditory Filtering as measured with the SSP were associated with poorer mental health of primary caregivers, even after an adjustment for ASD symptom severity. Analyses of two age sub-groups, a young (4–10 years) and an old age group (11–18 years), revealed that higher scores on Tactile Sensitivity and Auditory Filtering were associated with poorer mental health of primary caregivers in younger children, whereas only higher scores on Auditory Filtering were associated with poorer mental health of primary caregivers in older children. ConclusionsOur findings suggest that practitioners who support primary caregivers of children with ASD need to focus not only on the social and communication-related symptoms of the child but also on their specific sensory processing difficulties.

Late maturation of backward masking in auditory cortex.

Speech perception relies on the accurate resolution of brief, successive sounds that change rapidly over time. Deficits in the perception of such sounds, indicated by a reduced ability to detect signals during auditory backward masking, strongly relate to language processing difficulties in children. Backward masking during normal development has a longer maturational trajectory than many other auditory percepts, implicating the involvement of central auditory neural mechanisms with protracted developmental time courses. Despite the importance of this percept, its neural correlates are not well described at any developmental stage. We therefore measured auditory cortical responses to masked signals in juvenile and adult Mongolian gerbils and quantified the detection ability of individual neurons and neural populations in a manner comparable with psychoacoustic measurements. Perceptually, auditory backward masking manifests as higher thresholds for detection of a short signal followed by a masker than for the same signal in silence. Cortical masking was driven by a combination of suppressed responses to the signal and a reduced dynamic range available for signal detection in the presence of the masker. Both coding elements contributed to greater masked threshold shifts in juveniles compared with adults, but signal-evoked firing suppression was more pronounced in juveniles. Neural threshold shifts were a better match to human psychophysical threshold shifts when quantified with a longer temporal window that included the response to the delayed masker, suggesting that temporally selective listening may contribute to age-related differences in backward masking. NEW & NOTEWORTHY In children, auditory detection of backward masked signals is immature well into adolescence, and detection deficits correlate with problems in speech processing. Our auditory cortical recordings reveal immature backward masking in adolescent animals that mirrors the prolonged development seen in children. This is driven by both signal-evoked suppression and dynamic range reduction. An extended window of analysis suggests that differences in temporally focused listening may contribute to late maturing thresholds for backward masked signals.

Perinatal nicotine exposure impairs the maturation of glutamatergic inputs in the auditory brainstem

Chronic perinatal nicotine exposure causes abnormal auditory brainstem responses and auditory processing deficits in children and animal models. The effect of perinatal nicotine exposure on synaptic maturation in the auditory brainstem was investigated in granule cells in the ventral nucleus of the lateral lemniscus, which receive a single calyx-like input from the cochlear nucleus. Perinatal nicotine exposure caused a massive reduction in the amplitude of the excitatory input current. This caused a profound decrease in the number and temporal precision of spikes in these neurons. Perinatal nicotine exposure delayed the developmental downregulation of functional nicotinic acetylcholine receptors on these neurons. Maternal smoking causes chronic nicotine exposure during early development and results in auditory processing deficits including delayed speech development and learning difficulties. Using a mouse model of chronic, perinatal nicotine exposure we explored to what extent synaptic inputs to granule cells in the ventral nucleus of the lateral lemniscus are affected by developmental nicotine treatment. These neurons receive one large calyx-like input from octopus cells in the cochlear nucleus and play a role in sound pattern analysis, including speech sounds. In addition, they exhibit high levels of α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, especially during early development. Our whole-cell patch-clamp experiments show that perinatal nicotine exposure causes a profound reduction in synaptic input amplitude. In contrast, the number of inputs innervating each neuron and synaptic release properties of this calyx-like synapse remained unaltered. Spike number and spiking precision in response to synaptic stimulation were greatly diminished, especially for later stimuli during a stimulus train. Moreover, chronic nicotine exposure delayed the developmental downregulation of functional nicotinic acetylcholine receptors on these neurons, indicating a direct action of nicotine in this brain area. This presumably direct effect of perinatal nicotine exposure on synaptic maturation in the auditory brainstem might be one of the underlying causes for auditory processing difficulties in children of heavy smoking mothers.

Sensory processing ability and eating behaviour in children with autism

Background: During the past decade the prevalence of autistic spectrum disorders (ASD) has increased to 1% of the UK population. Anecdotal reports of children with ASD suggest they are atypical selective eaters who restrict their food intake based on idiosyncratic pre-requisites of texture and food presentation. Research has previously focused on the nutritional adequacy of such diets rather than underlying sensory processing capabilities that are known to be impaired in up to 90% of children with ASD (Leekham et al., 2007). Sensory processing skills, eating behaviour and parent-child relationships are intersecting aspects of ASD; and each play a role in achieving maximum potential in developing daily living skills. Previous research, relating sensory processing ability and eating behaviour, is limited. The aim of the study was to explore the relationship between sensory processing ability and eating behaviour in children with ASD. Methods: This analytical, exploratory study used purposive sampling, through approach of a parental support group for children with ASD in October 2009. Consent was sought from parents or guardians to complete two questionnaires; the validated Short Sensory Profile (SSP) and an eating behaviour questionnaire (EBQ) developed by the author and consisting of eight domains and four open questions. The domains of the EBQ were taste, texture, smell, behaviour, sound, environment, vision and touch. The domains were selected to reflect the SSP, and as a result of qualitative research from parental and specialist input and literature. Results of both questionnaires were statistically analysed using SPSS. Domains within each questionnaire were presented as mean (SD) and performance related data (SSP only) was presented as ‘typical performance’, ‘probable difference’ and ‘definite difference’ to indicate the degree of sensory processing difficulty (Dunn, 1999). Spearman Rank Correlation coefficient was used to explore correlations between domains within the two questionnaires. Ethical approval was gained from Leeds Metropolitan University Research Ethics Committee. Results: All parents (n = 20) participated in the study; completing questionnaires for 20 children (18 male, two female), mean age 10.8(2.6) years. Results of the SSP indicated that 71% of children in the study had sensory processing difficulties, of which auditory filtering (83%) and tactile sensitivity (68%) were ‘definite’ problem areas. Within the eating behaviour questionnaire, mealtime behaviour, vision, taste and smell were common areas that caused difficulty in daily life. Significant correlations between 20% of factors on the SSP and eating questionnaire were noted, the highest being SSP-taste/smell and EBQ taste (r = 0.9, P < 0.001) and SSP-taste/smell and EBQ vision (r = 0.9, P < 0.001). Discussion: This pilot study confirmed previous reports of sensory processing difficulties in children with autism (Tomcheck and Dunn, 2007) and provides preliminary data indicating a potential relationship between aspects of sensory processing ability and eating behaviour. Validation of the eating behaviour questionnaire is now required to establish a true link between these two areas and provide a sound basis for further longitudinal research that can accurately examine the impact of behaviour on eating in children with ASD and potential shifts in behaviour over time. Conclusion: This pilot study provides preliminary data linking sensory processing difficulty and eating behaviour and provides a basis for further research that supports effective and early interventions that improve quality of life, skills and prospects for those with ASD.

Abnormal pattern of cortical speech feature discrimination in 6-year-old children at risk for dyslexia

The present study aimed to determine whether speech sound encoding and discrimination are affected in 6-year-old children having an elevated risk for dyslexia. Their event-related potentials (ERPs) for syllables and syllable changes critical in speech perception and language development (vowel, vowel-duration, consonant, frequency (F0), and intensity changes) were compared with those of children without a dyslexia risk. ERPs were recorded with a new linguistic multi-feature paradigm which enables one to assess the discrimination of five features in 20 min. Also, an oddball condition with vowel and vowel-duration deviants was included. The amplitudes of the P1 response elicited by the standard stimuli were smaller in the at-risk group. Furthermore, the amplitudes of the mismatch negativity (MMN) were smaller for the vowel, vowel-duration, consonant, and intensity deviants in children at risk for dyslexia. These results are consistent with earlier studies reporting auditory processing difficulties in children at risk for dyslexia and diagnosed dyslexia. However, the current study, enabling the recording of MMN for multiple sound features, suggests the presence of wide-spread auditory difficulties in children at risk for dyslexia.

Parasympathetic functions in children with sensory processing disorder

The overall goal of this study was to determine if parasympathetic nervous system (PsNS) activity is a significant biomarker of sensory processing difficulties in children. Several studies have demonstrated that PsNS activity is an important regulator of reactivity in children, and thus, it is of interest to study whether PsNS activity is related to sensory reactivity in children who have a type of condition associated with sensory processing disorders termed sensory modulation dysfunction (SMD). If so, this will have important implications for understanding the mechanisms underlying sensory processing problems of children and for developing intervention strategies to address them. The primary aims of this project were: (1) to evaluate PsNS activity in children with SMD compared to typically developing (TYP) children, and (2) to determine if PsNS activity is a significant predictor of sensory behaviors and adaptive functions among children with SMD. We examine PsNS activity during the Sensory Challenge Protocol; which includes baseline, the administration of eight sequential stimuli in five sensory domains, recovery, and also evaluate response to a prolonged auditory stimulus. As a secondary aim we examined whether subgroups of children with specific physiological and behavioral sensory reactivity profiles can be identified. Results indicate that as a total group the children with severe SMD demonstrated a trend for low baseline PsNS activity, compared to TYP children, suggesting this may be a biomarker for SMD. In addition, children with SMD as a total group demonstrated significantly poorer adaptive behavior in the communication and daily living subdomains and in the overall Adaptive Behavior Composite of the Vineland than TYP children. Using latent class analysis, the subjects were grouped by severity and the severe SMD group had significantly lower PsNS activity at baseline, tones and prolonged auditory. These results provide preliminary evidence that children who demonstrate severe SMD may have physiological activity that is different from children without SMD, and that these physiological and behavioral manifestations of SMD may affect a child's ability to engage in everyday social, communication, and daily living skills.

Book reviews

Book reviewed in this article: A Text for the Caring Professions by Robert B. Burns. Treating Auditory Processing Difficulties in Children by Christine Sloan. Microcomputer Applications for Speech and Language Services in the Schools by Jana Sanders. Sequelae of Low Birthweight: The Vancouver Study edited by Henry G. Dunn. Voice Disorders and their Management edited by Margaret Fawcus. Spina Bifida in South Wales. Can it be Prevented? by Nansi James. Diabetes. A Practical Guide for Patients on Insulin by Robert Tattersall.