[Memory and attention in children with brain dysfunction]

For conscious behaviours to continue, attention and working memory must be brought into play in order to match the data from the current reality with those in the long-term memory and to the sequential plans for adaptive action.

We present the preliminary findings of our study of 50 patients between 7 and 16 years of age, who were divided into three groups according to their dominant neurocognitive disorder: a 'pure' ADHD group, an ADHD/LD group (with comorbid learning disorder) and an RMEM (risk of memory disorder due to bilateral temporomesial damage) group. All of them were administered a battery of tests designed to evaluate attentional control and short and long-term memory.

Verbal IQ was above 80 in all the participants, with no differences among the three groups. The ADHD/LD group had a manipulative IQ and level of sustained attention below those of the ADHD group, but no long-term memory deficit was observed in either of these two groups. In contrast, the RMEM group's performance was poorer in verbal memory tasks, although their behaviour is more attentive and stable compared to that of the other two groups.

Neuropsychological analysis of these dissociations allows adjustments to be made in the strategies for therapeutic interventions. Performance in long-term learning in children with ADHD and ADHD/LD can be improved with psychostimulants owing to the activating effect they have on working memory.