Journal article
Reliability of a computer-based neurobehavioral assessment test battery for Bangladeshi adolescent children
Neurotoxicology (Park Forest South), Vol.85, pp.47-53
07/2021
DOI: 10.1016/j.neuro.2021.04.005
PMID: 33940044
Abstract
•There is a need for low-cost neurobehavioral test batteries for developing countries.•We assessed the feasibility and test-retest reliability of the BARS in adolescents.•We found the BARS tests reliable because of significant test-retest correlations.•Adolescents showed improvement in neurobehavioral performance over time.•The effects of age and sex on the BARS tests were in the expected directions.
In developing countries, there is a need for low-cost neurobehavioral (NB) test batteries for vulnerable populations, particularly for children exposed to environmental neurotoxicants. The objective of the current study was to assess the feasibility and test-retest reliability of the Behavioral Assessment and Research System (BARS) in children from a rural community in Bangladesh. Fifty healthy adolescents living in the Health Effects of Arsenic Longitudinal Study (HEALS) area in Araihazar, Bangladesh completed all six tests from the BARS in two test sessions scheduled two weeks apart. The BARS tests evaluated NB functions such as motor coordination, attention, memory, and information processing speed. The reliability assessment, evaluated by test-retest correlations demonstrated moderate to strong correlations (i.e., correlation coefficients ranged from 0.43 to 0.85), which were statistically significant (p < 0.05). Paired t-tests for comparing the test and retest outcomes indicated significant improvement in NB performance, highlighting learning and practice effects. NB performance improved with increasing age in most cases. Adolescent boys performed better than the girls in Finger Tapping, Digit Span, and Simple Reaction Time, whereas the girls performed better in Continuous Performance and Symbol Digit tests. The reliability scores (Pearson’s correlations 0.43−0.85) were consistent with other children studies in different cultural settings. The effects of age and sex on NB tests were also consistent with findings reported in other countries. Overall, the findings of the study support the feasibility of using this computer-based test system to assess vulnerability of brain health due to environmental exposures among rural Bangladeshi children.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Reliability of a computer-based neurobehavioral assessment test battery for Bangladeshi adolescent children
- Creators
- Khalid M Khan - Department of Population Health, College of Health Sciences, Sam Houston State University, 1901 Ave I, CHSS Suite 432, Huntsville, TX, 77341, USALynette C Hatch - Department of Psychology and Philosophy, College of Humanities and Social Sciences, Sam Houston State University, 1905 University Ave, Huntsville, TX, 77340, USASalma Akhter - Department of Occupational and Environmental Health Science, College of Health and Human Sciences, Purdue University, 550 Stadium Mall Drive, West Lafayette, IN 47907Mahbubul Eunus - U-Chicago Research Bangladesh Ltd., House 04, Road 2B, Sector 4, Uttara, Dhaka, 1230, BangladeshZheng Zhou - Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, School of Public Health, Indiana University-Bloomington, 1025 E 7thStreet, Room 029, Bloomington, IN, 47405, USAFaruque Parvez - Department of Environmental Health, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, 722 W, 168thStreet, New York, NY, 10032, USADiane Rohlman - Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, College of Public Health, The University of Iowa, S324 CPHB, 145 N Riverside Dr, Iowa City, 52242, Iowa, USA
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Neurotoxicology (Park Forest South), Vol.85, pp.47-53
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.neuro.2021.04.005
- PMID
- 33940044
- NLM abbreviation
- Neurotoxicology
- ISSN
- 0161-813X
- eISSN
- 1872-9711
- Publisher
- Elsevier B.V
- Grant note
- DOI: 10.13039/100000066, name: National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, award: P42ES010349; DOI: 10.13039/100010178, name: Indiana University Bloomington, award: P42ES010349; DOI: 10.13039/100016817, name: University of Maryland School of Public Health, award: P42ES010349
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 07/2021
- Academic Unit
- Occupational and Environmental Health; International Programs; Injury Prevention Research Center
- Record Identifier
- 9984214782802771
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