Covert orienting to exogenous and endogenous cues in children with spina bifida.
Children with spina bifida meningomyelocele and hydrocephalus (SBM) have congenital dysmorphology of the midbrain and thinning of the posterior cortex, brain regions associated with the control of covert orienting. We studied cued covert orienting in 92 children with SBM, and 40 age-matched typically developing controls. Cues were of three types: exogenous (luminance change in a peripheral box either valid or invalid for upcoming target location), endogenous arrow (a central arrow either valid or invalid for upcoming target location), or endogenous word (a central word either valid or invalid for upcoming target location). Compared to controls, children with SBM showed slowed covert orienting to both exogenous and endogenous cues and a higher cost of attentional disengagement (e.g., a greater cue-validity effect) for exogenous although not for endogenous cues. Covert orienting deficits were associated with midbrain dysmorphology in the form of beaking of the tectum, and with right posterior brain volume loss.
Dennis
Maureen
M
Brain and Behaviour Program, Department of Psychology, The Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Avenue, Toronto, Ont. M5G 1X8, Canada. maureen.dennis@sickkids.ca
Edelstein
Kim
K
Copeland
Kim
K
Frederick
Jon
J
Francis
David J
DJ
Hetherington
Ross
R
Blaser
Susan E
SE
Kramer
Larry A
LA
Drake
James M
JM
Brandt
Michael E
ME
Fletcher
Jack M
JM
D000293:Adolescent; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology*; D002648:Child; D003463:Cues; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006849:Hydrocephalus / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D016555:Matched-Pair Analysis; D008636:Mesencephalon / Q000002:abnormalities / Q000503:physiopathology; D009929:Organ Size; D009949:Orientation / Q000502:physiology*; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D012016:Reference Values; D016135:Spinal Dysraphism / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D003336:Tectum Mesencephali / Q000002:abnormalities* / Q000503:physiopathology; D014796:Visual Perception / Q000502:physiology