Attention and Arousal
Arousal is a precursor for attention. It has been defined as “the general state of readiness of an individual to process sensory information and/or organize a response” (130). Although there have not been systematic studies of pharmacologic interventions to improve arousal in children with TBI, a number of medications have been used and reported in case studies.
One retrospective report of amantadine in children with TBI noted that compared to a group of children who had not been started on any neurostimulant medication, those on amantadine had a greater increase in their Ranchos Los Amigos level during hospitalization. The amantadine group had lower initial Ranchos scores and GCS (131). Dopaminergic medication use has also been reported, again in a retrospective review. In this report, the children’s Western Neuro Sensory Stimulation Profile scores pre- and during medication were compared. Also, the rate of change in these scores before and after medication were compared. Significant differences were noted, suggesting that the medication could be contributing to the accelerated rate of improvement (132).As noted previously, children with a prior history of ADHD are at an increased risk to sustain TBI. Likewise, attentional problems are common after TBI, affecting an additional approximately 20% (5). Severity of TBI is reported to be associated with the likelihood of developing attentional problems (133,134). The attentional problems seen after TBI in children are not the same as seen in developmental ADHD. It has been reported that skills that develop earlier in childhood are relatively spared compared to those that develop later. Therefore, sustained attention and divided attention are more significantly impaired than focused attention (135). Also, children with TBI tend to have slower response speeds than children with developmental ADHD (136). Both behavioral interventions and medications have been used as treatment for children with attentional problems after TBI. Case reports have noted improvements (137,138).
More on the topic Attention and Arousal:
- Direct-to-consumer (DTC) availability of genetic testing is a relatively new phenomenon, which has, until recently, largely escaped the attention of regulators.
- The Focus of Attention
- ATTENTION-DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER
- Over a period of many centuries, Chinggis Khan and his exploits have attracted widespread attention.
- Shiti usul, in general, has received little attention in scholarly discussions of Islamic legal theory. Whilst Twelver usul has gained some attention, there is almost no coverage of the Ismatili and Zaydi usul traditions.[1]
- Management of IDU-related problems
- SLEEP DISORDERS
- Chapter 6 Roxolana’s Memoirs as a Garden of Intertextual Delight
- TECHNICAL FACTORS OF NEEDLE ELECTROMYOGRAPHY
- 5 AROUSING IMAGES: THE POETRY OF DIVINATION AND THE DIVINATION OF POETR