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Executive strategic processing during verbal fluency performance in children with phenylketonuria
Pia Banerjee1, Dorothy K Grange, Robert D Steiner
1Department of Psychology, Washington University in St. Louis, MO 63130, USA.
Summary
Children with early-treated phenylketonuria (PKU) show deficits in strategic processing, impacting word generation and task switching. These executive function impairments may worsen with age, necessitating careful monitoring.
Area of Science:
- Neuropsychology
- Developmental Psychology
- Pediatrics
Background:
- Phenylketonuria (PKU) is a metabolic disorder requiring early dietary treatment.
- Executive functions, including strategic processing, are crucial for cognitive development.
- Deficits in executive functions have been observed in children with early-treated PKU.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate strategic processing abilities in children with early-treated PKU.
- To compare executive functions between children with PKU and typically developing controls.
- To analyze age-related changes in strategic processing in early-treated PKU.
Main Methods:
- Assessed strategic processing using semantic and phonemic fluency tasks.
- Measured word generation, clustering, and switching behaviors.
- Compared performance between 32 children with early-treated PKU and 41 typically developing controls.
Main Results:
- Children with PKU generated fewer words and made fewer switches than controls.
- Switching ability was linked to word output in both groups.
- A significant age-group interaction indicated slower improvement in switching for the PKU group.
Conclusions:
- Early-treated PKU is associated with impaired frontally-mediated strategic processing.
- Strategic processing deficits in PKU may persist and evolve with age.
- Regular evaluation of executive functions is recommended for children with PKU.
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