VISUAL AND PHONOLOGICAL PROCESSING IN DEVELOPMENTAL DYSLEXIA: A CROSS-LINGUISTIC INVESTIGATION

This thesis aimed to investigate the extent to which visual processing is impaired in individuals with developmental dyslexia (henceforth DD) across orthographies varying in orthographic transparency. Contrasting the prevailing account, it was proposed that a phonological deficit per se may not to be sufficient to explain the difficulties shown by individuals with reading disorders

Are the WISC-IV Italian norms similar to the UK norms? A comparison between the two standardizations

The WISC-IV is the most popular psychological battery in the world. However, not all subtests remain the same in the various adaptations of the scale. In fact, only the subtests included in the perceptual reasoning and in the processing speed indexes remain virtually the same across various adaptations of the scale. In this paper we compared Italian with United Kingdom norms in these two indices. Results showed that differences in the processing speed index were small and that they were larger in the perceptual reasoning index. Further, differences between the two standardizations, were not homogeneous, but concentrated in specific age groups. The clinical and theoretical implications of the study will be discussed

Shallow or deep? The impact of orthographic depth on visual processing impairments in developmental dyslexia

Copyright © The Author(s) 2022. The extent to which impaired visual and phonological mechanisms may contribute to the manifestation of developmental dyslexia across orthographies of varying depth has yet to be fully established. By adopting a cross-linguistic approach, the current study aimed to explore the nature of visual and phonological processing in developmental dyslexic readers of shallow (Italian) and deep (English) orthographies, and specifically the characterisation of visual processing deficits in relation to orthographic depth. To achieve this aim, we administered a battery of non-reading visual and phonological tasks. Developmental dyslexics performed worse than typically developing readers on all visual and phonological tasks. Critically, readers of the shallow orthography were disproportionately impaired on visual processing tasks. Our results suggest that the impaired reading and associated deficits observed in developmental dyslexia are anchored by dual impairments to visual and phonological mechanisms that underpin reading, with the magnitude of the visual deficit varying according to orthographic depth

Children and Young People Presenting in a Pediatric Emergency Department in North-West England in Suicidal Crisis: An Exploratory Case Series Study

Suicide is a leading cause of death among children and young people (CYP) worldwide, and rates have been increasing in recent years. However, while evidence exists regarding factors associated with suicide and self-harm, there is limited information publicly available on the CYP who present in suicidal crisis. This is a case series study of CYP (aged 8–16) experiencing suicidal crisis who presented in an Emergency Department at a pediatric hospital in North-West England between March 2019 and March 2021 (n = 240). Clinical records were extracted and audited to explore demographic data, methods of recording patient attendance, the clinical pathways available and the patterns of pathway usage, and differences in CYP presentations before and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Attendees were mostly White females, with a mean age of 13.5 years, and 24% had a diagnosed special educational need. “Social/social problems” was the most commonly used code for recording attendance (38%), and pathways varied depending on code used. A range of parental and familial factors were also identified. There were more CYP presenting with self-harm in addition to suicide ideation after the pandemic began (43 vs 27% pre-pandemic). This study provides the first clear insight into CYP who seek help at a North-West Emergency Department for suicidal crisis, and work is now needed to develop effective prevention strategies tailored toward the groups most at-risk

Children and Young People Attending Alder Hey A&E in Suicidal Crisis: 2019-2021

Introduction: Suicide is still the leading cause of death among children and young people (CYP) in the UK (Brahmbhatt et al., 2019; Hawton et al., 2012; Windfuhr et al., 2008), with suicide rates amongst adolescents having increased by 7-9% per year since 2010 (Bould et al., 2019). Rates have increased even further in more recent years; 2018 data on suicide deaths from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) indicate a 22% one-year increase in suicide rates in under 25-year-olds, the largest rise amongst all age groups. The UK suicide rate in adolescent girls is now the highest since records began in 1981 (ONS, 2019; Rodway et al., 2020). Furthermore, there is some emerging evidence of a possible trend of increasing child suicide deaths in England during the COVID-19 pandemic and associated lockdowns, although this is provisional and numbers are too small for any meaningful analysis (Odd et al., 2020). Aims: This report examined Alder Hey A&E attendances for children and young people in suicidal crisis. Presentations to A&E were explored from March 2019 to March 2021 for children aged 16 and under. Crisis line data was also examined over a one-year period from April 2020 when the line was introduced to March 2021. The study aimed to evaluate: 1. Demographic data at Alder Hey’s A&E for children and young people who attend in suicidal crisis; 2. The way in which presentations of suicidal crisis are recorded at this site; 3. The clinical pathways available to young people who attend A&E in suicidal crisis and the patterns of pathway usage; 4. Use of the CAMHS crisis line, including the demographics of the users and the reasons for their calls; 5. Differences in crisis presentations at A&E and through the crisis line before and after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020 Results: A total of 240 attendances by children and young people in suicidal crisis, with twothirds of attendees being female. One in five young people attended with suicidal ideation and self-harm and just over two-thirds of attendees had a history of self-harm. Over a third of attendees had previously diagnosed mental health difficulties and one in four re-attended in the same year. One in five attendees had special educational needs (SEN) with the most common SEN diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder. Of those with a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder who attended Alder Hey in suicidal crisis, just over one in five were female. Conclusion: This report provides detailed information about a group that has been the focus of attention due to the increasing numbers of presentations and the public health priority given to a reduction in the national suicide rates. However, this data is entirely hospital based at one A&E and therefore cannot comment about the cases in the community, which can be twice as many compared to hospital referrals. Recommendations: The main recommendations from this report are as followed: • Standardised protocol to track children and young people attending A&E in suicidal crisis. • Further exploration into suicidal crisis A&E attendances for children and young people with autism diagnoses

Suicidal crisis among children and young people: Associations with adverse childhood experiences and socio-demographic factors

Suicide is a major public health issue and a leading cause of death among children and young people (CYP) worldwide. There is strong evidence linking adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) to an increased risk of suicidal behaviours in adults, but there is limited understanding regarding ACEs and suicidal crisis in CYP. This study aims to examine the ACEs associated with CYP presenting at Emergency Departments for suicidal crisis, and specifically the factors associated with repeat attendances. This is a case series study of CYP (aged 8–16) experiencing suicidal crisis who presented in a paediatric Emergency Department in England between March 2019 and March 2021 (n=240). The dataset was subjected to conditional independence graphical analysis. Results revealed a significant association between suicidal crisis and several ACEs. Specifically, evidence of clusters of ACE variables suggests two distinct groups of CYP associated with experiencing suicidal crisis: those experiencing ‘household risk’ and those experiencing ‘parental risk’. Female sex, history of self-harm, mental health difficulties, and previous input from mental health services were also as- sociated with repeat hospital attendances. Findings have implications for early identification of and intervention with children who may be at a heightened risk for ACEs and associated suicidal crisis

Shallow or deep? The impact of orthographic depth on visual processing impairments in developmental dyslexia

The extent to which impaired visual and phonological mechanisms may contribute to the manifestation of developmental dyslexia across orthographies of varying depth has yet to be fully established. By adopting a cross-linguistic approach, the current study aimed to explore the nature of visual and phonological processing in developmental dyslexic readers of shallow (Italian) and deep (English) orthographies, and specifically the characterisation of visual processing deficits in relation to orthographic depth. To achieve this aim, we administered a battery of non-reading visual and phonological tasks. Developmental dyslexics performed worse than typically developing readers on all visual and phonological tasks. Critically, readers of the shallow orthography were disproportionately impaired on visual processing tasks. Our results suggest that the impaired reading and associated deficits observed in developmental dyslexia are anchored by dual impairments to visual and phonological mechanisms that underpin reading, with the magnitude of the visual deficit varying according to orthographic depth

Double trouble – visual and phonological impairments in English dyslexic readers

Developmental dyslexia is a reading disorder characterized by problems in accurate or fluent reading. A deficiency in phonological processing is thought to underpin the reading difficulties of individuals with developmental dyslexia and a variety of explanations have been proposed including deficits to phonological awareness and verbal memory. Recent investigations have begun to suggest that developmental deficits in the acquisition of reading may also co-occur with visual processing deficits, which are particularly salient for visually complex stimuli, yet these deficits have received relatively little attention from researchers. To further explore the nature of phonological and visual processing in developmental dyslexia, we administered a series of non-reading tasks tapping both domains. Unsurprisingly, individuals with developmental dyslexia performed worse than typically developing readers in phonological tasks. More intriguingly, they also struggled with visual tasks, specifically when discriminating between novel visual patterns, and in visuo-spatial working memory which requires greater attentional control. These findings highlight that individuals with developmental dyslexia present not only with phonological impairments but also difficulties in processing visual materials. This aspect has received limited attention in previous literature and represents an aspect of novelty of this study. The dual phonological and visual impairments suggest that developmental dyslexia is a complex disorder characterized by deficits in different cognitive mechanisms that underpin reading