Banca de DEFESA: EDIANA ROSSELLY DE OLIVEIRA GOMES

Uma banca de DEFESA de DOUTORADO foi cadastrada pelo programa.
DISCENTE : EDIANA ROSSELLY DE OLIVEIRA GOMES
DATA : 28/09/2017
HORA: 09:00
LOCAL: Laboratório de Psicologia
TÍTULO:

INVESTIGATION OF NEUROPSYCHOLOGICAL AND ACADEMIC ASPECTS IN CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS 

 ACUTE LYMPHOBLASTIC LEUKEMIA - ALL SURVIVORS

PALAVRAS-CHAVES:

Neuropsychology, neurodevelopment, pediatric oncology, learning, chemotherapy.

PÁGINAS: 184
GRANDE ÁREA: Ciências Humanas
ÁREA: Psicologia
RESUMO:

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common type of cancer among children and
adolescents. The sophistication of the diagnostic and therapeutic processes has promoted an
increase in survival and reduction of relapse of the disease. The inclusion of prophylactic CNS
therapy, performed through chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy, has been identified as essential
for therapeutic success, but it seems to be related to the emergence of late neuropsychological
effects in about 30% of survivors. Studies suggest that changes in specific cognitive domains
contribute to the decline of intellectual functioning and academic difficulties presented by this
clinical population. The main objective of the present study was to investigate the
neuropsychological and academic aspects of children and adolescents who survived ALL. The
research was divided into four studies: 1) The intellectual functioning of children and adolescents
diagnosed with ALL; 2) Attention and executive functions in pediatric survivors of ALL; 3)
Translation and adaptation of the Deasy-Spinetta Behavioral Questionnaire (DSBQ); 4)
Investigation of academic aspects in children and adolescents diagnosed with ALL. 26 children and
adolescents surviving ALL who underwent chemotherapy (clinical group), 26 healthy children and
adolescents (control group), 26 parents and 46 teachers took part in this study. The
neuropsychological evaluation protocol included the following domains: intellectual functioning,
attention, memory, executive functions, academic abilities and behavioral aspects. The results
were analyzed by descriptive and inferential statistical tools. In study 1, the clinical group
performed significantly lower than the control group. Maternal low schooling was associated with
lower performance in verbal, nonverbal and global intellectual functioning. The younger age at
diagnosis was correlated with low verbal domain, global intellectual capacity and working
memory, and the latter was also associated with longer treatment completion time. Study 2
evidenced significantly lower performance of the clinical group in attention and executive
functions, especially in the subgroup of children diagnosed before the age of five. The results of
study 3 suggested that the DSBQ has an apparent or face validity, being a readily usable
instrument. In study 4 the clinical group presented lower results in arithmetic, text
comprehension and storage processes, learning evolution and information retrieval. Specific
difficulties of school functioning were associated predominantly with the child's lower age at
diagnosis. It is hoped that the knowledge produced by this study may contribute to the
development of programs aimed at the reinsertion of the school and the elaboration of public
policies for this clinical population, as well as the accomplishment of future studies in
neuropsychology of development and learning.

MEMBROS DA BANCA:
Externo à Instituição - Alessandra Gotuzo Seabra - UPM
Interno - 2143029 - CINTIA ALVES SALGADO AZONI
Presidente - 1321136 - IZABEL AUGUSTA HAZIN PIRES
Externo ao Programa - 1168479 - NEUCIANE GOMES DA SILVA
Externo à Instituição - ROSA MARIA MARTINS DE ALMEIDA - UFRGS