NEURO-COGNITIVE EFFECTS OF EARLY UNILATERAL BRAIN DAMAGE

这项拟议的研究调查了早期单侧大脑 对后续神经认知发育的影响。 大量研究 大脑受损时的年龄对 损害的功能后果。 然而，在大多数情况下， 一项研究调查了病变对认知功能的影响， 只有一个时间点，只提供了一个"快照"， 脑损伤的后果。 这是特别有问题的， 脑损伤叠加在发达的大脑上。 这项拟议中的研究考察了大脑在经历了一段时间后 先天性脑卒中偏瘫患儿认知功能损害 病变 初步的横截面数据表明， 病变是预测认知功能的重要因素， 这些孩子 特别是，这些孩子的整体智商 在7 - 8岁之后与正常人有显著差异，但在7 - 8岁之前没有。 先天性脑梗死神经认知后果的纵向信息 单侧损伤将通过施用广泛的 对两组儿童进行认知和神经测试， 测试：1）儿童先天性单侧脑病变证实， CT扫描2）没有结构性病变，但 与脑损伤儿童的年龄、性别、种族、社会经济状况相匹配， 初始测试时的状态和IQ。 纳入这样一个对照组将 让我们能够确定是否有任何变化的模式或水平， 随着时间的推移，智力功能是早期单侧大脑特有的 伤害或者说是智商水平特有的。 除了认知和神经测试，偏瘫儿童将 接收脑电图 这将使我们能够将脑电图和/或癫痫 神经认知发育异常 最后，偏瘫儿童 将接受MRI检查，以便将我们对神经系统的理解- 发育中儿童早期脑损伤的认知后果 应提供有关功能成熟时间进程的信息 以及导致更好的长期规划， 脑损伤儿童的补救计划。

The proposed research investigates the effects of early unilateral brain lesions on subsequent neuro-cognitive development. Numerous studies have shown that age at the time of the brain damage has significant effects on the functional consequences of the damage. However, for the most part each study has investigated the effects of lesions on cognitive functioning at only a single point in time, providing only a "snapshot" of the consequences of the brain damage. This is particularly problematic when the brain damage is superimposed on a developed brain. The proposed research examines the effects of elapsed time since the brain damage on cognitive functioning in hemiplegic children with congenital lesions. Preliminary cross-sectional data suggest that elapsed time since lesion is an important factor in predicting the cognitive functioning of these children. In particularly, the overall IQ of these children appears to differ significantly from normals after, but not before age 7 - 8. Longitudinal information on the neuro-cognitive consequences of congenital unilateral lesions will be obtained by administering a broad range of cognitive and neurological tests to two groups of children we have already tested: 1) children with congenital unilateral brain lesions confirmed by CT-scans 2) children who do not have structural lesions, but who are matched to the brain damaged children for age, sex, race, socio-economic status and IQ at initial testing. Inclusion of such a control group will allow us to determine whether any changes in pattern or level of intellectual functioning over time are specific to early unilateral brain damage or rather, are IQ-level specific. In addition to cognitive and neurological tests, hemiplegic children will receive EEGs. This will allow us to relate EEG and/or seizure abnormalities to neuro-cognitive development. Finally, hemiplegic children will receive MRI studies in order to relate our understanding of the neuro- cognitive consequences of early brain lesions for the developing child should provide information about the time course of functional maturation of the nervous system as well as leading to better long-term planning of remediation programs for brain damaged children.