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Developmental dyscalculia: a dysconnection syndrome?

Kucian, Karin ; Ashkenazi, Simone ; Hänggi, Jürgen ; Rotzer, Stephanie ; Jäncke, Lutz ; Martin, Ernst ; von Aster, Michael

In: Brain Structure and Function, 2014, vol. 219, no. 5, p. 1721-1733

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    Titre
    • Developmental dyscalculia: a dysconnection syndrome?
    Auteur
    • Kucian, Karin. Center for MR-Research, University Children's Hospital Zurich, Steinwiesstrasse 75, 8032, Zurich, Switzerland
    • Ashkenazi, Simone. Center for MR-Research, University Children's Hospital Zurich, Steinwiesstrasse 75, 8032, Zurich, Switzerland
    • Hänggi, Jürgen. Division Neuropsychology, Institute of Psychology, University of Zurich, Binzmühlestrasse 14, 8050, Zurich, Switzerland
    • Rotzer, Stephanie. Center for MR-Research, University Children's Hospital Zurich, Steinwiesstrasse 75, 8032, Zurich, Switzerland
    • Jäncke, Lutz. Division Neuropsychology, Institute of Psychology, University of Zurich, Binzmühlestrasse 14, 8050, Zurich, Switzerland
    • Martin, Ernst. Center for MR-Research, University Children's Hospital Zurich, Steinwiesstrasse 75, 8032, Zurich, Switzerland
    • von Aster, Michael. Center for MR-Research, University Children's Hospital Zurich, Steinwiesstrasse 75, 8032, Zurich, Switzerland
    Type de document
    • Postprint
    Langue
    • Inglese
    Publié dans
    • Brain Structure and Function, 2014, vol. 219, no. 5, p. 1721-1733. Springer Berlin Heidelberg
    Autre version électronique
    Identifiant OAI-PMH
    • oai:doc.rero.ch:324996
    Summary
    Numerical understanding is important for everyday life. For children with developmental dyscalculia (DD), numbers and magnitudes present profound problems which are thought to be based upon neuronal impairments of key regions for numerical understanding. The aim of the present study was to investigate possible differences in white matter fibre integrity between children with DD and controls using diffusion tensor imaging. White matter integrity and behavioural measures were evaluated in 15 children with developmental dyscalculia aged around 10years and 15 matched controls. The main finding, obtained by a whole brain group comparison, revealed reduced fractional anisotropy in the superior longitudinal fasciculus in children with developmental dyscalculia. In addition, a region of interest analysis exhibited prominent deficits in fibres of the superior longitudinal fasciculus adjacent to the intraparietal sulcus, which is thought to be the core region for number processing. To conclude, our results outline deficient fibre projection between parietal, temporal and frontal regions in children with developmental dyscalculia, and therefore raise the question of whether dyscalculia can be seen as a dysconnection syndrome. Since the superior longitudinal fasciculus is involved in the integration and control of distributed brain processes, the present results highlight the importance of considering broader domain-general mechanisms in the diagnosis and therapy of dyscalculia.