Decline in Processing Speed Tells Only Half the Story

Developmental Delay in Children Living with Sickle Cell Disease

Bibliographic Data

ID15719788
AuthorsE Walker (0000-0002-7667-0428, Great Ormond Street Hospital), Elise Jade Walker (Developmental Neurosciences Unit, Biomedical Research Centre, UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, London WC1N 1EH, UK), Fenella J Kirkham (0000-0002-2443-7958, Great Ormond Street Hospital, corresponding author), Anna Hood (0000-0002-7213-1179, Centre for Mental Health)
Year2024
Volume11
Issue3
Pages277-277
Publication date2024-02-23
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueChildren (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2227-9067 • E-ISSN: 2227-9067
PublisherMultidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (PUBLISHER • CH)
DOI10.3390/children11030277
OpenAlexW4392095756
LanguageEN
References cited62

Children with sickle cell disease (SCD) may experience cognitive difficulties, including slowed processing speed. Thus, we investigated if processing speed changes over time. From 1992–2001, 103 participants with SCD aged 3–16 years (n ≤ 8.99 = 45; n ≥ 9.00 = 58) completed cognitive assessments. MRI was available for 54 participants. Between 1992–2002, 58 participants consented to one or two further assessments. A repeated measures regression using linear mixed-effects modelling determined longitudinal changes in processing speed index (PSI), examining the interaction between age (continuous variable) and timepoint (i.e., assessment 1 or 3) and controlling for MRI infarct status (i.e., no infarct, silent infarct, or stroke). Those aged ≤8.99 and ≥9.00 at first assessment experienced PSI decline. Declines were most prominent for the processing speed coding subtest, with a significant interaction between timepoint and age, t(31) = 2.64, p = 0.01. This decline may reflect a developmental delay, likely due to disease progression, with slower improvements in processing speed. Although there have been significant improvements in SCD treatments, mostly in high-income countries, processing speed still remains a target; thus, incorporating clinical monitoring of processing speed may help identify delay and allow for early intervention

Disease · Pathology · Hemoglobinopathies and Related Disorders · Iron Metabolism and Disorders · Medicine · Prenatal Screening and Diagnostics · Psychology

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