Neuropsychological and behavioural functioning of 495 children referred for multidisciplinary assessment

Abstract Aim of the presentstudy was two fold: (1) to evaluatethe course of referring and diag-nosing Learning Disabilities (LD)and the contribution of multidis-ciplinary assessment and (2) todescribe characteristics of threeLD subtypes: Attention with orwithout Motor function Disabili-ties (AMD), Verbal Learning Dis-abilities (VLD) and Non-VerbalLearning Disabilities (NVLD).Diagnostics, behavioural and neu-ropsychological data from 495children aged 6–17 years weredescribed. First, AMD and VLDwas the most frequent LD. Multi-disciplinary assessment couldcontribute to the diagnostic pro-cess of LD, especially in diagnos-ing uncommon LD andcomorbidities. Secondly, beha-vioural ratings, information pro-cessing, attention regularity andvisual-motor integration proved tobe most sensitive in discriminat-ing between the three LD sub-types. However, diagnosing NVLDrequires additional developmentalinformation. Multiple discrimi-nant function analysis correctlyclassified 61.7% of a selection ofthe present sample into LD sub-types as diagnosed by the multi-disciplinary team. It is believedthat the three subtypes are clini-cally relevant and suggestions aremade to test the present classifi-cation functions in an indepen-dent sample, preferably diagnosedusing a structured diagnosticinterview.

[1]  B. Rourke,et al.  Rules for the classification of younger children with nonverbal learning disabilities and basic phonological processing disabilities. , 2005, Archives of clinical neuropsychology : the official journal of the National Academy of Neuropsychologists.

[2]  D. Bishop,et al.  Developmental dyslexia and specific language impairment: same or different? , 2004, Psychological bulletin.

[3]  Bonny J. Forrest,et al.  The Utility of Math Difficulties, Internalized Psychopathology, and Visual-Spatial Deficits to Identify Children With the Nonverbal Learning Disability Syndrome: Evidence for a Visualspatial Disability , 2004, Child neuropsychology : a journal on normal and abnormal development in childhood and adolescence.

[4]  C. Gillberg.  ADHD and DAMP: A General Health Perspective. , 2003, Child and adolescent mental health.

[5]  J. Piek,et al.  Fine and gross motor ability in males with ADHD , 2003, Developmental medicine and child neurology.

[6]  M. Abrahamowicz,et al.  Profile of Referrals for Early Childhood Developmental Delay to Ambulatory Subspecialty Clinics , 2001, Journal of child neurology.

[7]  A. Spessatto,et al.  Learning disabilities: analysis of 69 children. , 2001, Arquivos de neuro-psiquiatria.

[8]  C. Gillberg,et al.  The comorbidity of ADHD in the general population of Swedish school-age children. , 2001, Journal of child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines.

[9]  W. Vogel,et al.  Child psychiatry in Johannesburg, South Africa. A descriptive account of cases presenting at two clinics in 1997 , 1999, European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.

[10]  A. Kingma,et al.  Performance of 225 Dutch school children on Rey's Auditory Verbal Learning Test (AVLT) , 1999 .

[11]  P. Slanetz,et al.  Diagnosis and treatment of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in children and adolescents. Council on Scientific Affairs, American Medical Association. , 1998, JAMA.

[12]  J. Biederman,et al.  Psychiatric comorbidity in attention deficit disorder: impact on the interpretation of Child Behavior Checklist results. , 1992, Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

[13]  D. Rubin,et al.  Statistical Analysis with Missing Data. , 1989 .

[14]  F. Oberklaid,et al.  The assessment of children with school problems: Evaluation of a hospital‐based multidisciplinary clinic , 1985, Australian paediatric journal.

[15]  J. Grebler,et al.  Interdisciplinary approach to developmental pediatrics in a hospital-based child evaluation center. , 1983, The Journal of the Medical Society of New Jersey.

[16]  J. C. Coleman,et al.  A Descriptive-Relational Study of 364 Children Referred to a University Clinic for Learning Disorders , 1967 .

[17]  C. Gillberg,et al.  Co–existing disorders in ADHD – implications for diagnosis and intervention , 2004, European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.

[18]  S. Rourke,et al.  Practice of Child-Clinical Neuropsychology: An Introduction , 2002 .

[19]  N. Gordon.  Dyslexia-Why can't I learn to read? , 1999 .

[20]  H. Hart,et al.  A neurodevelopmental approach to specific learning disorders , 1999 .

[21]  R. Ownby,et al.  An analysis of 180 children referred to a university hospital learning disabilities service , 1987, Child psychiatry and human development.

[22]  Helmer R. Myklebust,et al.  Learning Disabilities: Educational Principles and Practices , 1967 .