Factor structure of the CNS Vital Signs computerized cognitive battery in youth with neurological diagnoses

Computerized cognitive batteries, such as CNS Vital Signs (CNSVS), can provide valuable information in clinical and research settings. However, psychometric properties, especially in children and adolescents, remain relatively understudied. The aim of this study was to investigate the factor structure of CNSVS in children and adolescents with neurological diagnoses.

Participants with neurological diagnoses (N = 280) age 7–19 years were assessed as part of their clinical care at a tertiary hospital. All participants received the full CNSVS computerized cognitive battery, which contains seven subtests designed to measure attention, executive functioning, psychomotor speed, and memory. Principal components analyses were used to examine factor structure.

Scores from CNSVS subtests loaded onto a three-component solution and accounted for 46% of the variance. The three components were deemed to best represent (1) speed, (2) memory, and (3) inhibition, with subtest scores loading differently than the original 11 primary and secondary domain scores would have suggested.

Although the CNSVS program generates numerous primary and secondary domain scores, a three-component solution represents a more parsimonious approach to interpreting performance on the CNSVS in youth with neurological diagnoses. Confirmation of this factor solution in other samples is warranted.     

Perirhinal cortex and its neighbours in the medial temporal lobe: Contributions to memory and perception

As promised in the Introduction, this Special Issue presents several recurring themes concerning the perirhinal cortex and its neighbours within the medial temporal lobe (MTL). First, although orthodoxy insists that the diverse constituents of the MTL operate as a single functional entity, several papers presented here challenge that idea, although some defend it. Second, although many experts hold that the MTL subserves memory but not perception, several papers presented here point to a role for certain MTL structures in both. Third, although some researchers have invoked “species differences” to account for discrepant findings, several papers presented here document a striking convergence of findings in humans, nonhuman primates, and rodents. We close this Special Issue by high-lighting these recurring themes, acknowledging discrepant findings and pointing to future research that might resolve some current controversies.