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Memory deficits are a common sequelae following childhood traumatic brain injury (TBI), which often have serious implications on age-related academic skills. The current study examined verbal memory performance using the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT) in a pediatric TBI sample. Verbal memory abilities as well as the effect of age at-testing on performance were examined. A sample of 67 children following severe TBI (age average = 12.3 ± 2.74) and 67 matched controls were evaluated using the RAVLT. Age effect at assessment was examined using two age groups: above and below 12 years of age during evaluation. Differences between groups were examined via the 9 RAVLT learning trials and the 7 composite scores conducted out of them. Children following TBI recalled significantly less words than controls on all RAVLT trials and had significantly lower scores on all composite scores. However, all of these scores fell within the low average range. Further analysis revealed significantly lower than average performance among the older children (above 12 years), while scores of the younger children following TBI fell within average limits. To conclude, verbal memory deficits among children following severe TBI demonstrate an age-at-testing effect with more prominent problems occurring above 12 years at the time of evaluation. Yet, age-appropriate performance among children below 12 years of age may not accurately describe memory abilities at younger ages following TBI. It is therefore recommended that clinicians address child’s age at testing and avoid using a single test as an indicator of verbal memory functioning post TBI. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

We analyzed the relationship between several measures of attention (e.g., sustained and divided attention) and measures of verbal memory (e.g., immediate and delayed memory) in children aged 8-17 years. The attentional measures were derived from several tests of attention: Trail-Making, Digit Cancellation, Digit-Symbol, and Digit-Span. The verbal memory measures were derived from the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (AVLT). We found that most correlations between attention and the Rey AVLT measures were mediated by age. After removing the contribution of age, relationships were found between attentional and memory measures only in the younger age groups (8-12) but not in the older age groups (13-17). For the younger children different attentional tests predicted different aspects of verbal memory. Furthermore, boys and girls showed different patterns of attention-memory relationships. The theoretical and clinical implications of these findings are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assessment of attention is a key issue in the study of neuropsychological development. In this study we collected Hebrew norms for four frequently used attention tests (Trail Making, Digit-Symbol, Digit Span, and Digit Cancellation), analyzed the developmental sensitivity of each test and traced changes in attention across ages. The tests were administered to 809 boys and girls ranging in age from 8 to 17, divided into 10 age cohorts. The results indicate that, although all tests showed age effects, Digit-Symbol and Digit Cancellation tests were most developmentally sensitive. Another interesting finding was that younger age groups (8-11) are more dissociable by attention tests than older age groups (12-17), indicating that changes in attention are more pronounced in the early years and stabilize in later years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nine hundred and forty-three children (487 boys and 456 girls, agerange 8 to 17 years, divided into 10 age cohorts) were administered the Hebrewversion of the Rey AVLT. Separate norms for boys and girls in each age groupare reported. Sensitivity to age for 14 memory measures extracted from theRey AVLT was analyzed. One of the most consistent findings across the differentscores is that memory changes in the 8- to 10- year-old age range are moredynamic than changes in the 11- to 17- year-old age range. The results alsoshow a significant and consistent advantage for girls over boys on most ofthe verbal memory measures. Detailed analyses of sensitivity to age of thedifferent measures extracted from the Rey AVLT provide very useful informationfor the diagnostician testing auditory-verbal memory in children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]