Process Relearn

D eve lop Deve l o p m e n t a l re a d i n g d i s o rd e r ( D R D ) i s not caused by vision problems, but rather by prob t ro u ble rhymi n g a n d s e p ara t i n g t h e s o u n d s i n s p o ken words. These abilities appear to be critical i re cognition, w h i c h i nvo l ve s b e i n g a b l e t o s e p a ra t e out the sounds in words and match them with let i n t o a cohere n t s e n t e n c e . B e c a u s e D R D c hildren have difficulty connecting the sounds of c h i l dren with D R D h ave n o r m a l i n t e l l i g e n c e , a n d many have above-average inte a b i lity to thi n k o r t o u n d e rs t a n d c o m p l ex i d e a s . D RD may ap pear in combination wit i nvolve using sy m b o l s t o c o nvey i nfo r m a t i o n . T h e s e conditions may appear alone or in any combinat b efore a diag n o s i s of D R D c a n b e m a d e . C u l t u ra l a nd educational shortfalls, emotional problems, m Fo l low -up stu d i e s w i l l b e re q u i re d b efo re t h e re s u lts of this study on a small number of boys can le Va i d ya and As s o c i a t e P rofe s s o r J o h n G a b r i e l i of S tanford ’s Department of Psychology. Theirs is th di f ferent effe c t s o n t h e b ra i n s of p e o p l e w i t h a n d without ADD, and where those differences occur A c ade my of S c i e n c e s . T h e s t u d y i s a l s o t h e f i rs t t o use functional magnetic resonance imaging [FM i n s te ad of in ave ra g e s of d i f fe re n c e s of t wo g ro u ps. This is critical for diagnosis, which has to be n o t require in j e c t i o n o r i n h a l a t i o n of ra d i o a c t i ve substances. It relies instead on naturally occu p u rpos es for c h i l d re n . C o - a u t h o rs of t h e s t u d y a re medical doctors Glenn Austin and Hugh Ridle A l t o s , Calif. a n d G a r y G l ove r a n d J o h n D e s m o n d of the Stanford Medical Center’s Radiology Depa s o w idespread , s o c o n t rove rs i a l a n d c o nf u s i n g , and these are among the few clear findings in th At t e ntion def i c i t d i s o rd e r, w h i c h of t e n i n c l u d es hyperactivity, is currently diagnosed on the b re p lic ated, h e s a i d , i t m i g h t b e p o s s i b l e t o m a ke a biological diagnosis of the disorder by usin o n b rain func t i o n a re n o t k n ow n , p a re n t s a n d p e diatricians most likely would welcome a more def a s ked individ u a l l y t o p l ay a m e n t a l g a m e w h i l e lying in a magnetic resonance imaging device, w s t r iatal struc t u re s b e l ow i t . T h e b oys , 1 0 of w h o m had been diagnosed with ADD affected striata n o t . T he heal t hy b oys , i n c o n t ra s t , s h owe d t h e reverse - less activity in those areas when taking i n j ec ting rad i o a c t i ve m a te r i a l , a c o n s e n s u s d eve l oped that it is the frontal striatal circuitry of t h i s part of t h e b ra i n , a n d o u r s t u d y c o nf i r m e d t hat these structures are, indeed, important fo T h e opposite ef fe c t s of R i t a l i n o n b oys w i t h A D D and boys without the disorder suggest that ADD i t h a t the s t u d y wa s c o n d u c t e d w i t h a s m a l l g roup and needs to be replicated with girls as well a m a rke r for t h e d i s o rde r. T h ey a l s o re p o r t e d that they tried the experiment on three other bo t h ree siblings of A D D b oys s h owe d s o m e R i t a lin enhancement of the striatum, as did their affe g e ne tic influe n c e s o n d o p a m i n e m o d u l a t i o n ,” Vaidya said, but more studies would be necessary a l s o were caref u l t o p o i n t o u t o t h e r l i m i t a t i o n s of their study. A fraction of people diagnose t h ey s aid. It a l s o d i d n o t a t t e m p t t o i nve s t i g a t e possible changes in brain activatio l evel when no t o n t h e d r u g , b u t a l l of t h e m h a d been taking Ritalin previously as part of thei i n t o b rain fu n c t i o n t h a t c o u l d i m p rove i n d i v i d u a l s’ performance. “This instead on naturally oc fo r children. C o - a u t h o rs of t h e s t u d y a re m e d i c al doctors Glenn Austin and Hugh Ridlehuber a n d Gary Glove r a n d J o h n D e s m o n d of t h e S t a nfo rd Medical Center’s Radiology Department.

The s o controvers i a l a n d c o nf u s i n g , a n d t h e s e a re a m ong the few clear findings in that field,” said Ga di s o rder, whi c h of t e n i n c l u d e s hy p e ra c t i v i t y, i s c u rrently diagnosed on the basis of subjective obs p o ss ible to m a ke a b i o l og i c a l d i a g n o s i s of t h e d isorder by using FMRI. Since the common treatm p a rents and p e d i a t r i c i a n s m o s t l i ke l y wo u l d we l c o me a more definitive way to diagnose the a m ental gam e w h i l e l y i n g i n a m a g n e t i c re s o n a n c e imaging device, which was set to image i t.

Th e b oys , 1 0 of w h o m h a d b e e n d i a g n o s ed with ADD and 6 of whom had n X o n a d i s p l ay s c ree n . B e c a u s e m o s t of t h e letters were not X, each child builup a predispos X . The task wa s ex p ec t e d t o b e , a n d i n fa c t p roved to be, more difficult for the boys with ADD l a t e r, rese a rc h e rs fo u n d a c l e a r d i f fe re n c e i n the activation of neuronal tissue in two structure di f ferences b e t we e n t h e b oys w i t h A D D a n d t h ose without were even more dramatic when the s m e dic ation u s e d t o t e m p o ra r i l y re l i eve sy m p t o ms of ADD, such as inattention, impulsivity and h h a d taken th e d r u g , ” Va i d ya s a i d . “ R i t a l i n i m p roved everyone’s performance, but how it actuall s t r u c tures (s p e c i f i c a l l y k n ow n a s t h e c a u d a t e a n d putamen) when taking the drug than when not. T dr u g t han wh e n n o t . “ Fro m p a s t wo r k w i t h a d u l t s and children, some of which required injecting t h a t i s what’s n o t r i g h t w i t h t h i s d i s o rd e r,” Va i d ya said. “That is why we imaged this part of p r i m ar ily, bu t n o t exc l u s ive l y, i nf l u e n c e s d o p a m i n e neurotransmission.

The opposite effects of R m o d ulation in t h e s t r i a t um , s h e s a i d . T h e re s e a rc hers caution that the study was conducted with c e rtain they h ave fo u n d a u n i ve rs a l n e u ro b i o l o g i c al marker for the disorder.

They also reported h a d siblin g s w i t h t h e d i a g n o s i s .

Two of the three siblings of ADD boys showe s u p por t to th e i d e a t h a t A D D m ay i nvo l ve atypical genetic influences on dopamine m B e cause of th e w i d e s p re ad i n t e re s t i n A D D , the researchers also were careful t n o t respo n d e d t o R i t al i n t re a t m e n t , a n d t h i s s tudy did not include such chil dren t h a t might oc c u r w i t h t h e d r u g ove r t i m e .

T he ADD boys did show a different brain ac p a rt of their o n g o i n g t re a t m e n t .

D e s p i t e t h e s e limitations, the study points to new d o n e of the few s t u d i e s t o exa m i n e b ra i n function in children, and to further our know p owerf ul tool t o exa m i n e b ra i n a n d b e h av i o r i n the context of both normal and abnormal d h o me and sch o o l , a n d t h e l o n g -t e r m c o n s e q u e n ces include lower educational and vocational b e haviors. Deve l o p m e n t a l re a d i n g d i s o rd e r ( D RD) is not caused by vision problems, but r m ay have tro u b l e r hy m i n g a n d s e p a ra t i n g t h e s o u nds in spoken words. These abilities b a s e d on word re c o g n i t i o n , w h i c h i nvo l ve s b e i n g able to separate out the sounds in words and m of words in t o a c o h e re n t s e n t e n c e . B e c a u s e D R D children have difficulty connecting the sounds c h i l dren wi t h D R D h ave n o r m a l i n t e l l i g e n c e , a nd many have above-average intelligence.

The d t h i nk or to u n d e rs t a n d c o m p l ex i d e a s . D R D m ay a ppear in combination with developmental writi i nfor mation. T h e s e c o n d i t i o n s m ay a p p e a r a l one or in any combination. Other causes of lea c a n be made.

C u l t u ra l a n d e d u c a t i o n a l shortfalls, emotional problems, mental retardati s t udie s will b e re q u i re d b efo re t h e re s u l t s of t his study on a small number of boys can lead to b Va i d ya and As s o c i a t e P rofe s s o r J o h n G a b r i e l i of Stanford ’s Department of Psychology. The A D D, has diffe re n t ef fe c ts o n t h e b ra i n s of people with and without ADD, and where those diff t h e National A c a d e my of S c i e n c e s . T h e s t u dy is also the first to use functional magnetic di f ferences i n i n d i v i d u a l p e o p l e , i n s t e a d of i n ave rages of differences of two groups. This is cr u s e d i n othe r s t u d i e s of A D D , F M R I d o e s n o t re quire injection or inhalation of radioactive subs a p propriate fo r re s e a rc h a n d c l i n i c a l p u r p o s e s for children. Co-authors of the study are medical C o mmunity/Ac a d e m i a C o al i t i o n i n L o s A l t o s , C a l i f. and Gary Glover and John Desmond of the Stanf n e u ros cientis t s b e c a u s e “A D D i s s o w i d e s p read, so controversial and confusing, and these ar w h ere the re s e a rc h wa s d o n e .

At t e n t i o n deficit disorder, which often includes hyperactiv n ew f indings c a n b e rep l i c a t e d , h e s a i d , i t might be possible to make a biological diagnosi l o n g-term effe c t s o n b ra i n f u n c t i o n a re not known, parents and pediatricians most likely a g es of 8 and 13 we re a s ke d i n d i v i d u a l l y t o p l ay a mental game while lying in a magnetic resona c o rtex and th e s t r i a t a l s t r u c t u re s b e l ow i t . T h e b oys, 10 of whom had been diagnosed with ADD an exce pt the le t t e r X o n a d i s p l ay s c re e n . B e c a u s e most of the letters were not X, each child built u h e saw an X. T h e t a s k wa s ex p e c t e d t o b e , a n d i n fact proved to be, more difficult for the boys with l a t e r, researc h e rs fo u n d a c l e a r d i f fe re n c e i n t h e activation of neuronal tissue in two structur di f ferences b e t we e n t h e b oys w i t h A D D a n d t h o s e without were even more dramatic when the sub m e dic ation u s e d t o t e m p ora r i l y re l i eve sy m p t o m s of ADD, such as inattention, impulsivity and hype t a ke n the dru g ,” Va i d ya s a i d . “ R i t a l i n i m p rove d everyone’s performance, but how it actually did it d (s pe c ifically k n ow n a s t he c a u d a t e a n d p u t a m e n ) when taking the drug than when not. The healthy b n o t . “From pa s t wo r k w i t h a d u l t s a n d c h i l d re n , s o me of which required injecting radioactive mater n o t r ight with t h i s d i s o rd e r,” Va i d ya s a i d . “ T h a t i s why we imaged this part of the brain, and our s n o t exclusive l y, i nf l u e n c e s d o p a m i n e n e u ro t ra n s m ission. The opposite effects of Ritalin on boys w t h e striatum, s h e s a i d . T h e re s e a rc h e rs c a u t i o n t h at the study was conducted with a small group an fo u nd a unive rs a l n e u ro b i o l o g i c a l m a r ke r fo r t h e d isorder. They also reported that they tried the ex di a g nosis. Two of t h e t h re e s i b l i n g s of A D D b oys showed some Ritalin enhancement of the striatum a t y p ic al gene t i c i nf l u e n c e s o n d o p a m i n e m o d u l a t i o n,” Vaidya said, but more studies would be neces a l s o were caref u l t o p o i n t o u t o t h e r l i m i t a t i o n s of their study. A fraction of people diagnosed with s a i d. It also d i d n o t a t t e m p t t o i nve s t i g a t e p o s s i ble changes in brain activation that might occur w dr u g, but all of t h e m h a d b e e n t a k i n g R i t a l i n p reviously as part of their ongoing treatment. Desp c o u l d improve i n d i v i d u a l s ’ p e rfo r m a n c e . “ T h i s i s one of the few studies to examine brain functio G a br ie li said. “ I t s u g g e s ts t h a t F M R I i s a p owe rf u l tool to examine brain and behavior in the conte 3 t o 7 percen t of yo u n g s t e rs i n h o m e a n d s c h o o l , and the long-term consequences include lower ed a b u se and oth e r r i s ky b e h av i o rs . D eve l o p m e n t a l reading disorder (DRD) is not caused by vision pro w i t h DRD may h ave t ro u b le r hy m i n g a n d s e p a ra t i n g the sounds in spoken words. These abilities ap wo rd recognit i o n , w h i c h i nvo l ve s b e i n g a b l e t o s e parate out the sounds in words and match them w