Do 'clumsy' children have visual deficits. 2003

H Sigmundsson, and P C Hansen, and J B Talcott
Research Group for Child Development, Department of Sport Sciences, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim 7497, Norway. hermundurs@svt.ntnu.no

Visual processing by 10-year-old children diagnosed on the basis of standardised tests as having developmental 'clumsiness' syndrome, and by a control group of children without motor difficulties, was tested using three different psychophysical tasks. The tasks comprised a measure of global motion processing using a dynamic random dot kinematogram, a measure of static global pattern processing where the position of the target was randomised, and a measure of static global pattern processing in which the target position was fixed. The most striking finding was that the group of clumsy children, who were diagnosed solely on the basis of their motor difficulties, were significantly less sensitive than the control group on all three tasks of visual sensitivity. Clumsy children may have impaired visual sensitivity in both the dorsal and ventral streams in addition to their obvious problems with motor control. These results support the existence of generalised visual anomalies associated with impairments of cerebellar function.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D008297 Male Males
D009048 Motor Skills Performance of complex motor acts. Motor Skill,Skill, Motor,Skills, Motor
D009483 Neuropsychological Tests Tests designed to assess neurological function associated with certain behaviors. They are used in diagnosing brain dysfunction or damage and central nervous system disorders or injury. Aphasia Tests,Cognitive Test,Cognitive Testing,Cognitive Tests,Memory for Designs Test,Neuropsychological Testing,AX-CPT,Behavioral Assessment of Dysexecutive Syndrome,CANTAB,Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery,Clock Test,Cognitive Function Scanner,Continuous Performance Task,Controlled Oral Word Association Test,Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System,Developmental Neuropsychological Assessment,Hooper Visual Organization Test,NEPSY,Neuropsychologic Tests,Neuropsychological Test,Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test,Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status,Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure,Symbol Digit Modalities Test,Test of Everyday Attention,Test, Neuropsychological,Tests, Neuropsychological,Tower of London Test,Neuropsychologic Test,Test, Cognitive,Testing, Cognitive,Testing, Neuropsychological,Tests, Cognitive
D011597 Psychomotor Performance The coordination of a sensory or ideational (cognitive) process and a motor activity. Perceptual Motor Performance,Sensory Motor Performance,Visual Motor Coordination,Coordination, Visual Motor,Coordinations, Visual Motor,Motor Coordination, Visual,Motor Coordinations, Visual,Motor Performance, Perceptual,Motor Performance, Sensory,Motor Performances, Perceptual,Motor Performances, Sensory,Perceptual Motor Performances,Performance, Perceptual Motor,Performance, Psychomotor,Performance, Sensory Motor,Performances, Perceptual Motor,Performances, Psychomotor,Performances, Sensory Motor,Psychomotor Performances,Sensory Motor Performances,Visual Motor Coordinations
D002531 Cerebellum The part of brain that lies behind the BRAIN STEM in the posterior base of skull (CRANIAL FOSSA, POSTERIOR). It is also known as the "little brain" with convolutions similar to those of CEREBRAL CORTEX, inner white matter, and deep cerebellar nuclei. Its function is to coordinate voluntary movements, maintain balance, and learn motor skills. Cerebella,Corpus Cerebelli,Parencephalon,Cerebellums,Parencephalons
D002648 Child A person 6 to 12 years of age. An individual 2 to 5 years old is CHILD, PRESCHOOL. Children
D005260 Female Females
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D014786 Vision Disorders Visual impairments limiting one or more of the basic functions of the eye: visual acuity, dark adaptation, color vision, or peripheral vision. These may result from EYE DISEASES; OPTIC NERVE DISEASES; VISUAL PATHWAY diseases; OCCIPITAL LOBE diseases; OCULAR MOTILITY DISORDERS; and other conditions (From Newell, Ophthalmology: Principles and Concepts, 7th ed, p132). Hemeralopia,Macropsia,Micropsia,Day Blindness,Metamorphopsia,Vision Disability,Visual Disorders,Visual Impairment,Blindness, Day,Disabilities, Vision,Disability, Vision,Disorder, Visual,Disorders, Visual,Hemeralopias,Impairment, Visual,Impairments, Visual,Macropsias,Metamorphopsias,Micropsias,Vision Disabilities,Vision Disorder,Visual Disorder,Visual Impairments
D014787 Vision Tests A series of tests used to assess various functions of the eyes. Test, Vision,Tests, Vision,Vision Test

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