Dysphasia and dyslexia in the light of PASS theory
Correspondencia: Dr. F. Pérez-Álvarez. Unidad de Neuropediatría. Servicio de Pediatría. Hospital Universitari Josep Trueta. E-17007 Girona. Fax:+34 97221 2754.
E-mail: hosptrueta@comg.com
Introduction: The PASS theory of intelligence understands the cognitive function as an information process or program that can be differentiated in planning, attention, successive and simultaneous. Every process is linked to an anatomical region: planning to frontal cortex, attention to frontal cortex and subcortical structures, successive to frontal cortex and non-frontal cortex and simultaneous to non-frontal cortex. Effective remediation is possible when a PASS pattern is known.
Objective: To verify whether dysphasia and dyslexia have a typical PASS pattern.
Patients and methods: The subjects were divided in three groups comprising 12 children with dysphasia, 12 children with dyslexia and 10 children with dysphasia and dyslexia, all of them between 6 years and 12 years of age, the majority boys. All children were administered the DN:CAS test to define the PASS pattern. A control group with 45 normal children was used.
Results: Dysphasia shows poor successive and simultaneous process. Dyslexia shows poor successive process. The successive deficiency is poorer and in different way in dyslexia than in dysphasia which is inferable from comparative analysis between groups.
Conclusions: Dysphasia and dyslexia show a typical PASS pattern that allows an appropriate remedial training as a neurocognitive approach. The PASS diagnosis is a psychogenetic diagnosis which is different from the usual diagnosis based on semiology or results obtained with tests that explore non-PASS cognitive function.
Objetivo Comprobar si la disfasia y dislexia presentan un perfil PASS característico.
Pacientes y métodos Tres grupos, disfásicos, disléxicos y disfásico-disléxicos, compuesto por 12, 12 y 10 individuos, respectivamente, de edades entre los 6 y 12 años, con predominio de varones, fueron analizados con la prueba DN:CAS para definir el perfil PASS. Se utilizó un grupo control de 45 escolares normales.
Resultados La disfasia presenta un procesamiento secuencial y simultáneo deficitarios. La dislexia, un procesamiento secuencial deficitario. La afectación secuencial es peor y diferente en la dislexia que en la disfasia lo que puede deducirse de la comparación entre los tres grupos, grupo a grupo.
Conclusión La disfasia y la dislexia presentan un perfil PASS característico que permite una intervención terapéutica neurocognitiva. El diagnóstico PASS es un diagnóstico psicogenético, diferente al habitualmente utilizado, que se basa en la semiología o en el resultado ante pruebas que exploran la función cognitiva no PASS