Cognitive development of children with hemiparesis

Cognitive disorders (CD) affect perceptual processes, thinking and the acquisition of new information. This impairment of CD may manifest itself when the children have to complete complex academic skills. The aim of the following study was to investigate the effect of unilateral brain injury on the cognitive functions (CF) in hemiparetic (HP) children using the neuropsychological test-battery NEPSY (Korkman '85). 23 patients with left-hemisphere lesion (LHL) and 14 with right hemisphere lesion (RHL) as 13 normal controls were examined in 4-8 yr. age group. The patient was divided into two groups: congenital hemiparesis (CHP) 31 and acquired hemiparesis (AHP) 6. Neuropsychological (NP) assessment revealed, accepting the findings of MRI and CT scans, that the side of brain lesion was important factor for predicting CD in HP children. The LHL group demonstrated significant impairment on phonological and language tests, the RHL group was worse in visual and spatial skills. CD in children with unilateral brain damage tends to be multiple, impairment more than one CF confirmed by the individual test profiles.