title: Cognitive factors contributing to spelling performance in children with prenatal alcohol exposure.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Heavy prenatal alcohol exposure is associated with impaired school functioning. Spelling performance has not been comprehensively evaluated. We examined whether children with heavy prenatal alcohol exposure demonstrate deficits in spelling and related abilities, including reading, and tested whether there are unique underlying mechanisms for observed deficits in this population.
  
  
  METHODS
  Ninety-six school-age children made up 2 groups: children with heavy prenatal alcohol exposure (AE, n = 49) and control children (CON, n = 47). Children completed select subtests from the Wechsler Individual Achievement Test-Second Edition and the NEPSY-II. Group differences and relations between spelling and theoretically related cognitive variables were evaluated using multivariate analysis of variance and Pearson correlations. Hierarchical regression analyses were used to assess contributions of group membership and cognitive variables to spelling performance. The specificity of these deficits and underlying mechanisms was tested by examining the relations between reading ability, group membership, and cognitive variables.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Groups differed significantly on all variables. Group membership and phonological processing significantly contributed to spelling performance, whereas for reading, group membership and all cognitive variables contributed significantly. For both reading and spelling, group × working memory interactions revealed that working memory contributed independently only for alcohol-exposed children.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Alcohol-exposed children demonstrated a unique pattern of spelling deficits. The relation of working memory to spelling and reading was specific to the AE group, suggesting that if prenatal alcohol exposure is known or suspected, working memory ability should be considered in the development and implementation of explicit instruction.
authors: Center for Behavioral Teratology.
authors: Leila
authors: L
authors: Glass
authors: Center for Behavioral Teratology.
authors: Diana M
authors: DM
authors: Graham
authors: Department of Psychiatry.
authors: Natacha
authors: N
authors: Akshoomoff
authors: Center for Behavioral Teratology.
authors: Sarah N
authors: SN
authors: Mattson
mesh_terms: D000124:Achievement; D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007805:Language Development Disorders / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D008570:Memory, Short-Term / Q000502:physiology*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects / Q000503:physiopathology*; D011932:Reading; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis
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