The challenge of remote treatment in neuropsychological intervention for reading and spelling in dyslexia: A prospective observational cohort study.

Telemedicine approaches have proved to be valuable solutions for the delivery of treatment for many health-related issues, and crucial during the pandemics. Nonetheless, the efficacy of such Web-based practices in developmental dyslexia needs to be thoroughly evaluated. To this aim, the effects of a multi-componential program for neuropsychological intervention in dyslexia delivered as an outpatient program were compared with those obtained with a remotely delivered, Web-based treatment, based on the same methodological principles and delivered with the same duration and intensity. The treatment-related changes obtained with a combination of visual hemisphere-specific stimulation and training of visual-spatial attention through action video games, were compared to those obtained through remote treatment via the Tachidino Web-based platform. Both treatments had a duration of 4 weeks. The same battery of reading and phonemic awareness tests was delivered in presence, before and after treatment, as well as at 6-months follow-up. User satisfaction was assessed through parents and user questionnaires. Both treatments were significantly and similarly effective in improving reading speed, reading accuracy, and writing accuracy. No reduction in the effects was observed after treatment discontinuation. The Web-based treatment may thus offer a valid alternative to in-person intervention, optimizing the flexibility, capillary diffusion and cost-effectiveness of intervention.

Associations between Dietary Intake, Blood Levels of Omega-3 and Omega-6 Fatty Acids and Reading Abilities in Children.

Lower levels of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) have been described in individuals with reading difficulties, but the degree and the nature of such deficiencies as well as the role of nutrition are a matter of debate. The aim of the present study was to investigate the associations between PUFA blood levels, nutritional status, and reading/writing/phonological awareness performances in 42 school-age children with varying levels of reading ability. Significant correlations were found between PUFA levels (specific omega-6/omega-3 ratios), the ratio of omega-6-derived calories to the total amount of calories and reading scores. Mediation analysis showed a mediating effect of fatty acids on the association between reading speed scores and nutritional status. Moderation analysis, moreover, showed that the associations of omega-6/omega-3 ratios in the blood and Kcal omega-6/Kcal total in dietary intake were moderated by reading speed performances. Results of the mediation and moderation models confirm that the associations of dietary intake with PUFA levels in the blood vary depending on learning abilities. Reading skills appear to be sensitive to the effects of a complex set of favorable conditions related to the presence of higher omega-3 blood levels. These conditions may reflect the action of dietary as well as genetic and epigenetic mechanisms.

Remote treatment of developmental dyslexia: how ADHD comorbidity, clinical history and treatment repetition may affect its efficacy.

Introduction: Tachidino is a web-based platform for remote treatment of reading and spelling disorders. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the possible impact of different clinical conditions on the efficacy of treatment. The focus was on possible ADHD comorbidity-related effects on the outcomes of the Tachidino treatment, and the impact of previous treatments, such as speech and language therapy or the repetition of the same Tachidino program. Methods: 136 children with developmental dyslexia received four-weeks treatment via the Tachidino platform. Improvements in reading and writing scores were compared between different subgroups. Results: No gross differences emerged in treatment effectiveness between groups of children. Children receiving treatment improved significantly more than untreated children. Discussion: Treatment with Tachidino brought significant benefits for all children, irrespective of comorbidity, clinical history or treatment repetition. Comparison with an untreated control group (waiting list) made it possible to exclude that improvement was due to test-retest learning effects.

Direct and Indirect Effects of Blood Levels of Omega-3 and Omega-6 Fatty Acids on Reading and Writing (Dis)Abilities.

The purpose of the present study was to investigate whether there are associations between polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) blood levels, reading/writing performance and performance in neuropsychological tasks. Moderate to strong correlations were found between PUFA levels (specific omega-6/omega-3 ratios) and reading/writing abilities, and the former and neuropsychological test scores. Mediation models analyzing the direct and indirect effects of PUFA on reading and writing scores showed that the effects of fatty acids on learning measures appear to be direct rather than mediated by the investigated visual and auditory neuropsychological mechanisms. The only significant indirect effect was found for the difference in accuracy between the left and right visual fields in visual-spatial cueing tasks, acting as a mediator for the effect of PUFA ratios on writing accuracy. Regression analyses, by contrast, confirmed the roles of phonological awareness and other visual attentional factors as predictors of reading and writing skills. Such results confirm the crucial role of visual-spatial attention mechanisms in reading and writing, and suggest that visual low-level mechanisms may be more sensitive to the effects of favorable conditions related to the presence of higher omega-3 blood levels.

Remote Neuropsychological Intervention for Developmental Dyslexia with the Tachidino Platform: No Reduction in Effectiveness for Older Nor for More Severely Impaired Children.

Tachidino is a web-platform for remote treatment of reading and writing disorders. A total of 91 children with developmental dyslexia and/or dysorthographia participated in the present study and received Tachidino treatment. The purpose of the study was to compare results obtained after four weeks treatment and a six-month follow-up in older versus younger children and in more versus less severely impaired children (separately subdividing them according to reading speed, reading accuracy, and writing accuracy). The results showed no difference in improvement for reading accuracy and speed in the three age groups, but children below 9 years improved more than older children in writing accuracy. Regarding severity groups, children with more severe initial impairments improved more than children with less severe impairments. Additionally, the results were confirmed after controlling for spurious effects due to use of Z-scores and regression to the mean. The findings are discussed in terms of their theoretical and practical implications.

Towards Consensus on Good Practices for the Use of New Technologies for Intervention and Support in Developmental Dyslexia: A Delphi Study Conducted among Italian Specialized Professionals.

The use of new technologies for intervention in developmental dyslexia is steadily growing. In order to better understand the needs, the expectations, and the attitudes of Italian expert health professionals concerning such technologies, a national survey was conducted applying the Delphi methodology. Ad-hoc questionnaires were sent out to a group of eighteen experts over three successive rounds, and anonymously collected responses were aggregated and shared with the group after each round, aiming to reach a consensus on the proposed response. The goal was to define a series of statements that could form the basis for international "good practices" in the use of technologies for intervention to support dyslexia in children and adolescents. In the first round, the experts' general opinions were collected with both multiple choice and open questions, and in the second round consensus was assessed on a series of statements based on the first replies. The cut-off of 75% consensus on each statement was reached after three rounds. Fifteen experts completed all the rounds of the process, and a final version of the statements regarding good practice in the use of technologies for dyslexia could be defined.

Temporally extended self-awareness and affective engagement in three-year-olds.

The aim of the current study was to analyze the role of affective engagement during social interaction on the emergence of a temporally extended self (TES). A Delayed Self Recognition task was administered in two different social contexts: in presence of the mother ("Mother condition") or in presence of an unfamiliar person ("Experimenter condition"). The same sample of 71 tree-year-olds was tested twice in these two treatment conditions. Results showed higher self-recognition scores in the "Mother condition". These findings are consistent with developing-self theories that emphasize the impact of reciprocal social interaction on the emergence of self-awareness, and support a conception of the Self as a dialogic entity. We interpreted this link as a evidence that, when completing the procedure with their mother, children are aware of her attention, which corresponds to a familiar mode of self-perception, as well as to a peculiar affective consciousness of Self.