Browsing by Author "Gomes, Sofia Serafim Swinkels"
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- The study of executive functions in disorders of inhibitory control dysfunction: Autism spectrum disorder and neurofibromatosis type 1Publication . Gomes, Sofia Serafim Swinkels; Bernardino, Inês de SousaABSTRACT: Aim: Previous literature indicates that executive functioning is altered in both Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Neurofibromatosis Type 1 (NF), having an impact on response inhibition although it is not yet established to what extent. The primary aim of this dissertation is to study executive functions (EFs), with focus on response inhibition, in disorders with inhibitory dysfunction (ASD and NF1), allowing us to understand phenotype specificities. Method: A total of 60 participants, forming two experimental groups (ASD vs. NF1) and their respective control groups (CTASD vs. CTNF1) participated in the study. Participants were matched in age, sex and handedness with their respective control groups. A battery of 4 CANTAB tests, Trail Making (A and B) and Stroop tests were administered to fully evaluate EF in our groups. Results: Significant differences were found in the ASD group which take longer to react (latency is higher) to achieve a good performance (not making errors) in comparison to controls. In the NF1 vs. CTNF1 comparison, there were no significant differences, except on the screening test, where NF1 were faster than CTNF1, although this did not have a negative influence on performance. Conclusion: These findings reveal different patterns of performance in both ASD and NF1 groups although they predominantly indicate spared EF as they were measured in the current study. Further exploration of the results and practical implications are discussed, highlighting the need to conduct large-scale studies in adults using more ecological tasks that better represent the daily-life experiences of the participants.