OVERVIEW

There is accumulating evidence for a range of neuropsychological interventions, including cognitive rehabilitation, psychological therapies adapted for people with cognitive impairment, and neuropsychological assessment feedback. However, these evidence-based interventions are not consistently implemented into clinical practice. In this address, Dana will present a range of methods for enhancing clinical implementation of neuropsychological interventions, including clinician training, evaluating implementation frameworks, and developing and implementing clinical practice guidelines.

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BRIEF BIOGRAPHY

Dana Wong is an Associate Professor and Clinical Neuropsychologist in the School of Psychology and Public Health at La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia. She leads the eNACT (Neurorehabilitation And Clinical Translation) Research Group, which focuses on innovative neurorehabilitation techniques to improve the lives of acquired brain injury survivors, and enhancing clinical implementation of and clinician competence in these evidence-based intervention techniques. She has published over 80 journal articles, several book chapters and a treatment manual. She was awarded La Trobe's 2020 Research Engagement and Impact Award and the 2021 Australian Psychological Society (APS) College of Clinical Neuropsychologists Award of Distinction, as well as several teaching excellence awards. Dana is President of the Australasian Society for the Study of Brain Impairment and co-Chair of the Neuropsychological Intervention Special Interest Group of the International Neuropsychological Society.

OVERVIEW

Epilepsy has been characterized as “the paradigm of the suffering of both body and soul.” As such, epilepsy has not only provided unique insights into brain-behavior relationships, but also illustrates the challenges and misconceptions surrounding its management and care which have contributed to the heavy burden of stigma.  This presentation will highlight the important advances in how epilepsy has informed our understanding of focal brain abnormalities, broader generalized functional brain networks, and identified cognition as an essential comorbidity in many epilepsy syndromes. However, during the early 20th century, epilepsy was unjustly intertwined with the eugenics movement, leading to harmful practices fueled by inaccurate psychological labels such as "intelligence" rather than "cognition," ultimately harming rather than benefiting patients.  Cognitive assessment, however, has played a pivotal role in expanding our understanding of treatment efficacy in epilepsy beyond merely counting seizure frequency. It has highlighted cognition as a crucial treatment success, enabling the differentiation of cognitive impacts associated with various surgical interventions and delineating cognitive risks associated with medical management, particularly with anti-seizure medications, to optimize treatment outcomes.

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BRIEF BIOGRAPHY

David Loring is Professor of Neurology and Pediatrics at Emory University where he also serves as the Neurology Department’s Neuropsychology Program Director.  His research career has focused on the application of neuropsychological principles to better demonstrate pharmacologic, surgical, and neuromodulatory outcomes as critical components characterizing overall epilepsy treatment effectiveness.  He has also played an active role in advancing improved awareness of epilepsy by serving on multiple committees of the Epilepsy Foundation and the American Epilepsy Society and was chair of the NINDS Common Data Elements Epilepsy Neuropsychology Group.  Dr. Loring is presently an Editor-in-Chief for NEUROPSYCHOLOGY REVIEW and Associate Editor for EPILEPSIA, the official journal of the International League Against Epilepsy.  In addition to being an active researcher investigating the cognitive and behavioral side effects of anti-seizure medications (ASMs) for over three decades. Dr. Loring’s current ASM research includes studying the neurodevelopment effects of in utero ASM exposure in women with epilepsy.

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OVERVIEW

Frontal lesions can impair fluid intelligence and reasoning skills,  arguably two of most defining features of human cognition.  Yet our understanding of their relationship with other executive processes and their neuroanatomical basis remains poorly understood. Results of group and single case studies will be presented.  A right frontal network will be shown to be critical to the high-level processes involved in aspects of fluid intelligence and reasoning.

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BRIEF BIOGRAPHY

Prof Lisa Cipolotti is Professor of Neuropsychology at the Institute of Neurology at University College London and Head of the Neuropsychology Department at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, UCLH, NHS Trust London, UK. She is a fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences and the current President of the Federation of the European Societies of Neuropsychology. Her research is designed to improve the identification and detailed description of neuropsychological syndromes and to develop accurate diagnosis of impairments arising from brain disease or injury.

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OVERVIEW

Research results will be presented on the estimation of the prevalence of reading deficit in Spanish-speaking schoolchildren, as well as the comorbidity of reading deficit with at least one additional diagnosis within neurodevelopmental disorders.  Prevalence and comorbidity studies are relevant not only to determine the status of specific reading disorders, but also for the design of prevention and remediation strategies from teaching and rehabilitation practices.  The results indicate a prevalence ranging from 8.9% to 5.1% and between 60% and 71.4% of schoolchildren with reading deficits simultaneously present at least one possible neurodevelopmental disorder.

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BRIEF BIOGRAPHY

Degree in Psychology. Specialist in Learning Difficulties. Master's in Educational Psychology. PhD in Psychology (University of Murcia, Spain).  Director of the Department of Neuroscience and Learning.   Responsible for doctoral programs at the Catholic University of Uruguay.   President of the Latin American Society of Neuropsychology. Vice-president of the Uruguayan Society of Neuropsychology.  Has been Specialist Consultant for UNESCO and the Organization of Iberoamerican States (OEI) for the study of written language programs.

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