[Study of cognitive functions in autistic children by means of electrical brain mapping]

Brain electrical activity of 20 autistic children and 19 controls, age range 7-13 years, was recorded employing brain mapping technics, during different test conditions: closed eyes, open eyes, listening music, puzzle task, receptive language, expressive language, writing and reading. The maps let us to analyze the differentiation and topographic organization of brain electrical activity, and the changes induced by psychological tasks over the different brain areas. The autistics children show, versus controls, slowed brain electrical activity, less organization and topographic differentiation, and also poor reactivity to the different test conditions in relationship with the ethiological diversity of this syndrome.