Cardiac adaptivity to attention-demanding tasks in children with a pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS)

Citation
M. Althaus et al., Cardiac adaptivity to attention-demanding tasks in children with a pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS), BIOL PSYCHI, 46(6), 1999, pp. 799-809
Citations number
50
Language
INGLESE
art.tipo
Article
Categorie Soggetti
Neurosciences & Behavoir
Journal title
BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY
ISSN journal
0006-3223 → ACNP
Volume
46
Issue
6
Year of publication
1999
Pages
799 - 809
Database
ISI
SICI code
0006-3223(19990915)46:6<799:CATATI>2.0.ZU;2-2
Abstract
Background: Decreases in heart rate variability (HRV) have been repeatedly demonstrated to be an index of effort allocation to attention-demanding tas ks. Children with autistic-type problems in social interaction and in adapt ing to unfamiliar situations (DSM-IV: PDD-NOS) have been shown to have spec ific attention deficits. These children were hypothesized to exhibit less c ardiac adaptivity to attention-demanding tasks. Methods: Two groups of 18 children with PDD-NOS, judged to be hyperactive a nd nonhyperactive, were compared to 18 healthy children with respect to the ir performances on a visual attention task and the differences in HRV measu red during periods of task performance and periods of rest. Results: Compared to the control group, both clinical groups were found to have a stronger capacity limitation in processing high loads of information , and to be less capable of maintaining a stable task performance throughou t the whole task. Both clinical groups showed significantly less decreases in HRV during the periods of task performance. The magnitude of rest-task d ifferences in HRV was found to correlate significantly with a behavioral me asure of resistance to unexpected changes in daily routines. Conclusions: Children with PDD-NOS are significantly less flexible in their autonomic adaptation to attention-demanding tasks. The findings are interp reted as reflecting a deficiency in the functional organization of those ne ural pathways that provide cortical control of the visceral efferents. (C) 1999 Society of Biological Psychiatry.