Documentation of the Development of Various Visuomotor Responses in Typically Reared Kittens and Those Reared With Early Selected Visual Exposure by Use of a New Procedure

A new procedure was used to study the development of gaze (responses to moving targets or laser spots in normal kittens, those that had been reared in total darkness to 6 weeks of age, and others that received a period of monocular deprivation (MD). Gaze responses were observed to all stimuli in normal kittens at between 25–30 days of age and striking responses occurred on the same day or the next. Despite slow acquisition of spatial vision in the dark reared kittens over 3 months, they were able to follow and even strike at moving visual stimuli within a day of their initial exposure to light. By contrast, for a week following a period of MD, kittens showed no gaze or striking responses to moving stimuli when using their previously deprived eye. The very different profiles of acquisition of visuomotor skills and spatial vision in visually deprived kittens point to a dissociation between the neuronal populations that support these functions.

Long-Term Outcomes after Neonatal Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy in the Era of Therapeutic Hypothermia: A Longitudinal, Prospective, Multicenter Case-Control Study in Children without Overt Brain Damage

Background. Data on long-term outcomes in the era before therapeutic hypothermia (TH) showed a higher incidence of cognitive problems. Since the introduction of TH, data on its results are limited. Methods. Our sample population consisted of 40 children with a history of hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) treated with TH, with an average age of 6.25 years (range 5.5, 7.33), 24 (60%) males; and 33 peers with an average age of 8.8 years (6.08, 9.41), 17 (51%) males. Long-term follow-up data belong to two centers in Padova and Torino. We measured general intelligence (WPPSI-III or WISC-IV) and neuropsychological functioning (language, attention, memory, executive functions, social skills, visual motor abilities). We also administered questionnaires to their parents on the children’s psychopathological profiles and parental stress. Results. We found differences between groups in several cognitive and neuropsychological domains: intelligence, visuomotor skills, executive functions, and attention. Interestingly, IQ test results effectively differentiated between the groups (HIE vs. controls). Furthermore, the incidence of psychopathology appears to be significantly higher in children with HIE (35%) than in control peers (12%). Conclusions. Our study supports previous findings on a higher incidence of neuropsychological, cognitive, and psychopathological sequelae after HIE treated with TH. As hypothesized, TH does not appear to ameliorate the outcome after neonatal HIE in those children who survive without major sequelae.

Cross-transfer of motor control in visuomotor tasks. Systematic review

Introduction: The term “cross-education” describes the perfomance improvement, both in motor control and strength, of a limb after training the opposite. Despite its current interest, there is no consensus on many concepts of the transfer of a visuomotor skill. The aim of the present research was to review the current literature on the phenomenon of cross-education in visuomotor skills in order to determine the magnitude of transference and its relationships with the context of the intervention. Results: A literature search was conducted during December 2019 in the databases Pubmed, CINAHL, MEDLINE, Web of Science, SPORTdiscus and Scopus. The descriptors “Motor ability” and “Motor skill” were used, in addition to the keywords “Motor control”, “skill”, “Task”, “cross over effect”, “cross exercise”, “contralateral learning”, “inter limb transfer “,” cross transfer “,” cross education “. After applying the inclusion and exclusion criteria, a total of 19 articles were obtained for analysis. Of these articles, 12 are RCTs, 4 crossover clinical trial, 2 are non-randomized trials and only 1 lacks a control group. Most of the articles consist of a short-term intervention. Only 5 studies are of a duration of between 4 and 6 weeks. Conclusion: the cross-education phenomenon occurs in visuomotor skills. However, the magnitude of transference and its relation to the amount of learning of the trained member seems to be very variable depending on the context of the intervention. Likewise, the scarce consensus and the methodological differences in the studies make it difficult to draw firm conclusions about the effects of the context on the transference.

Videogame exposure positively associates with selective attention in a cross-sectional sample of young children

There is growing interest in how exposure to videogames is associated with young children’s development. While videogames may displace time from developmentally important activities and have been related to lower reading skills, work in older children and adolescents has suggested that experience with attention-demanding/fast-reaction games positively associates with attention and visuomotor skills. In the current study, we assessed 154 children aged 4–7 years (77 male; mean age 5.38) whose parents reported average daily weekday recreational videogame time, including information about which videogames were played. We investigated associations between videogame exposure and children’s sustained, selective, and executive attention skills. We found that videogame time was significantly positively associated only with selective attention. Longitudinal studies are needed to elucidate the directional association between time spent playing recreational videogames and attention skills.

Cognitive versus virtual reality simulation for evaluation of technical skills in neurosurgery

OBJECTIVE Simulation is gaining momentum as a new modality of medical training, particularly in acute care settings such as surgery. In the present study, the authors aimed to compare individual cognitive skills with manual abilities as assessed by virtual reality (VR) simulation among neurosurgical residents. METHODS Participants were asked to complete a multiple-choice questionnaire assessing their surgical abilities regarding three basic neurosurgical procedures (endoscopic third ventriculostomy, cranial meningioma, and lumbar laminectomy). They subsequently performed these same three procedures on a VR simulator (NeuroTouch). RESULTS The authors found that cognitive scores correlated with self-evaluation of surgical experience and autonomy. On the contrary, VR simulation, as assessed by NeuroTouch automated scoring, did not reflect participants’ cognitive or self-evaluation of their surgical proficiency. CONCLUSIONS The results of this study suggest that neurosurgical education should focus as much on cognitive simulation (e.g., careful planning and critical appraisal of actual procedures) as on VR training of visuomotor skills.

Developmental plasticity in visual cortex is necessary for normal visuomotor integration and visuomotor skill learning

The experience of coupling between motor output and visual feedback is necessary for the development of visuomotor skills and shapes visuomotor integration in visual cortex. Whether these experience-dependent changes involve plasticity in visual cortex remains unclear. Here, we probed the role of NMDA receptor-dependent plasticity in mouse primary visual cortex (V1) during visuomotor development. Using a conditional knockout of NMDA receptors and a photoactivatable inhibitor of CaMKII, we locally perturbed plasticity in V1 during first visual experience, recorded neuronal activity in V1, and tested the mice in a visuomotor task. We found that perturbing plasticity before, but not after, first visuomotor experience reduces responses to unpredictable stimuli, diminishes the suppression of predictable feedback in V1, and impairs visuomotor skill learning later in life. Our results demonstrate that plasticity in the local V1 circuit during early life is critical for shaping visuomotor integration.

tDCS and sporting performance: A systematic review and meta-analysis of transcranial direct current stimulation effects on physical endurance, muscular strength, and visuomotor skills

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a non-invasive brain stimulation technique that has been linked with a range of physiological and cognitive enhancements relevant to sporting performance. As a number of positive and null findings have been reported in the literature, the present meta-analysis sought to synthesise results across endurance, strength and visuomotor skill domains to investigate if tDCS improves any aspect of sporting performance. Online database searches in August 2020 identified 43 full-text studies which examined the acute effects of tDCS compared to sham/control conditions on physical endurance, muscular strength and visuomotor skills in healthy adults. The quantitative analysis indicated a small overall effect favouring tDCS stimulation over sham/control (SMD=0.25, CI95%[0.14;0.36]). Effects on strength (SMD=0.31, CI95%[0.10;0.51]) and visuomotor (SMD=0.29, CI95%[0.00;0.57]) tasks were larger than endurance performance (SMD=0.18, CI95%[0.00;0.37]). Meta-regressions indicated effect sizes were not related to stimulation parameters, but genetics, gender, and experience may modulate tDCS effects. The results suggest tDCS has the potential to be used as an ergogenic aid in conjunction with a specified training regime.