Characteristics of neuropsychological disorders in children with primary ciliary dyskinesia and bronchial asthma

The group of chronic non-specific lung diseases in children has not yet been sufficiently studied in terms of their impact on mental development, with the exception of bronchial asthma, for which there are a number of studies in the context of psychosomatic disorders. Meanwhile, the use of a neuropsychological approach in conducting topical psychological diagnostics in children may also be of practical importance from the point of view of choosing the directions of differentiated psychological correction. The aim of the study: to determine the nature of neuropsychological disorders in children with primary ciliary dyskinesia in comparison with patients with bronchial asthma. Materials and methods. The work was carried out at the Pulmonology Department of the Veltischev Institute and at the Department of Innovative Pediatrics and Pediatric Surgery of the Pirogov University of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation. The study included 60 children with chronic non-specific lung diseases, divided into 2 groups: Group 1 (main) ( n =30) — children suffering from primary ciliary dyskinesia (6 girls and 24 boys); Group 2 (comparison) ( n =30) — children suffering from bronchial asthma (16 girls and 14 boys). The age of the examined children was (group 1/2): 6–8 years — 6/4; 9–12 years — 13/11; 13–17 years — 11/15 people. All children underwent a comprehensive assessment of the state of higher mental functions using the neuropsychological research method developed by A.R. Luria. Statistical data processing was performed using the Statistics software package SPSS. Results. During the study, a number of differences were identified in children: in primary ciliary dyskinesia, there was topical insufficiency of the right hemisphere of the brain, while bronchial asthma is characterized by an increase in the functional state of the left hemisphere. Conclusions. Children with bronchial asthma are generally characterized by increased functional activity of the left hemisphere. Children with primary ciliary dyskinesia have a deficit in the holistic strategy of information processing, which is the prerogative of the right hemisphere. This may have practical significance in developing individual programs of neuropsychological correctional and developmental training.