Janaína Castro Núñez Carvalho

Estudo de fidedignidade do instrumento neuropsicológico Iowa Gambling Task

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed at evaluating reliability evidence of neuropsychological instrument Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) by the means of the test-retest method. METHOD: The sample was comprised of 50 healthy subjects, 19-75 years of age, with at least five years of formal education. The assessment was done individually, in two meetings with an interval from 1 to 6 months between test and retest. RESULTS: The findings showed a significant moderate positive correlation between test-retest in the overall calculation. In the analysis by segments, a significant moderate positive correlation was found for blocks 4 and 5, whereas there were no significant correlations for blocks 1, 2 and 3. CONCLUSION: These data corroborate recent studies that found moderate correlations between test-retest measures of executive functions, and suggest that the IGT can be used to assess decision making over time if specific analyses are taken into account.

Tomada de decisão no IGT: estudo de caso pós-AVC de hemisfério direito versus esquerdo

This study aimed at conducting a comparative investigation of the decision-making process of two post-unilateral CVA adults as well as verifying the role of hemispheric laterality in the performance of Iowa Gambling Task (IGT). One adult with right hemisphere damage (RHD) and another with left hemisphere damage (LHD), both following a subcortical ischemic post-CVA. The IGT was used to evaluate the decision making. Patients had appropriate performance on the IGT suggesting a general good ability to make decisions. However, only the patient with LHD presented signs of ascendant learning curve. Conclusion: These data indicate that a subcortical lesion independent of the hemisphere may not influence on the IGT performance. It is suggested that comparative studies of groups should be conducted in order to compare patients with frontal and non-frontal lesions, helping to characterize the decision-making process in population with unilateral vascular damage.

Psychological and Behavioral Indicators in the Forensic Assessment of Child Sexual Abuse

This study evaluated the discriminative ability of behavioral and psychological indicators often associated with child sexual abuse. The sample consisted of 79 children of both genders, 63.3% being female (n = 50), aged between 8 and 12 years (M = 9.92, SD = 1.45). Participants were assigned to three groups: Sexual abuse (n = 34), Maltreatment with no history of sexual abuse (n = 14) and Clinical symptoms with no history of abuse or other traumatic events (n = 31). Assessment measures were administered with the legal guardians and with the children. A multinomial logistic regression analysis was conducted aiming to identify factors for differentiation of the groups. The TSCC Sexual concerns variable emerged as signifi cant in differentiating the Sexual abuse group from both the Maltreatment and Clinical symptoms groups. The model showed overall predictive ability to accurately classify 69.6% of the cases. The investigation of this variable should be included, among other indicators, in forensic procedures for children with suspected sexual abuse. Based on the results, it becomes clear that caution is required in establishing causal relationships between behavioral or psychological manifestations and the hypothesis of child sexual abuse.

Cognitive screening and clinical symptoms in victims of child maltreatment: Evidence of intellectual deficit in a Brazilian sample.

Childhood maltreatment is a serious public health issue associated with short and long-term neurobiological, cognitive, and behavioral impairments. The aim of this study was to assess global cognitive profile, prevalence of intellectual deficit, and presence of clinical symptoms in a sample of maltreated children in Brazil. In addition, the possible associations between clinical symptoms and cognitive profile were investigated. To this end, 2 groups of children aged 6 to 12 years were compared. The maltreatment group (MG) consisted of 60 children exposed to 1 or more types of maltreatment. The control group (CG) included 25 children who had not suffered maltreatment. Maltreatment assessment was made through the Juvenile Victimization Questionnaire (JVQ). The child’s legal guardian answered a clinical and sociodemographic interview and the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Children answered a semistructured interview and performed the following neuropsychological tasks: Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence (WASI) matrix reasoning, WASI vocabulary, and Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC) digit span. Significant differences were found between groups regarding clinical symptoms assessed by CBCL, except for withdrawal/depression and internalizing symptoms. More pronounced cognitive impairment was found in the MG in all tasks, with high prevalence of borderline and extremely low intelligence levels. No associations were found between most of the clinical and cognitive domains, which suggests that cognitive difficulties do not arise from posttraumatic symptoms in the MG. Therefore, in addition to psychotherapy, cognitive stimulation interventions should be used in this population.

Decision making in IGT: a case study of post-CVA of left versus right hemisphere

This study aimed at conducting a comparative investigation of the decision-making process of two post-unilateral CVA adults as well as verifying the role of hemispheric laterality in the performance of Iowa Gambling Task (IGT). One adult with right hemisphere damage (RHD) and another with left hemisphere damage (LHD), both following a subcortical ischemic post-CVA. The IGT was used to evaluate the decision making. Patients had appropriate performance on the IGT suggesting a general good ability to make decisions. However, only the patient with LHD presented signs of ascendant learning curve. Conclusion: These data indicate that a subcortical lesion independent of the hemisphere may not influence on the IGT performance. It is suggested that comparative studies of groups should be conducted in order to compare patients with frontal and non-frontal lesions, helping to characterize the decision-making process in population with unilateral vascular damage.

Toma de decisión en el IGT: estudio de caso post-AVC de hemisferio derecho versus isquierdo

This study aimed at conducting a comparative investigation of the decision-making process of two post-unilateral CVA adults as well as verifying the role of hemispheric laterality in the performance of Iowa Gambling Task (IGT). One adult with right hemisphere damage (RHD) and another with left hemisphere damage (LHD), both following a subcortical ischemic post-CVA. The IGT was used to evaluate the decision making. Patients had appropriate performance on the IGT suggesting a general good ability to make decisions. However, only the patient with LHD presented signs of ascendant learning curve. Conclusion: These data indicate that a subcortical lesion independent of the hemisphere may not influence on the IGT performance. It is suggested that comparative studies of groups should be conducted in order to compare patients with frontal and non-frontal lesions, helping to characterize the decision-making process in population with unilateral vascular damage.