The act or fact of grasping the meaning, nature, or importance of; understanding. (American Heritage Dictionary, 4th ed) Includes understanding by a patient or research subject of information disclosed orally or in writing.

Tests designed to assess language behavior and abilities. They include tests of vocabulary, comprehension, grammar and functional use of language, e.g., Development Sentence Scoring, Receptive-Expressive Emergent Language Scale, Parsons Language Sample, Utah Test of Language Development, Michigan Language Inventory and Verbal Language Development Scale, Illinois Test of Psycholinguistic Abilities, Northwestern Syntax Screening Test, Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test, Ammons Full-Range Picture Vocabulary Test, and Assessment of Children's Language Comprehension.

'Reading' in a medical context often refers to the act or process of a person interpreting and comprehending written or printed symbols, such as letters or words, for the purpose of deriving information or meaning from them.

A discipline concerned with relations between messages and the characteristics of individuals who select and interpret them; it deals directly with the processes of encoding (phonetics) and decoding (psychoacoustics) as they relate states of messages to states of communicators.

The process whereby an utterance is decoded into a representation in terms of linguistic units (sequences of phonetic segments which combine to form lexical and grammatical morphemes).

The relationships between symbols and their meanings.

A verbal or nonverbal means of communicating ideas or feelings.

An aphasia characterized by impairment of expressive LANGUAGE (speech, writing, signs) and relative preservation of receptive language abilities (i.e., comprehension). This condition is caused by lesions of the motor association cortex in the FRONTAL LOBE (BROCA AREA and adjacent cortical and white matter regions).

Impairment in the comprehension of speech and meaning of words, both spoken and written, and of the meanings conveyed by their grammatical relationships in sentences. It is caused by lesions that primarily affect Wernicke's area, which lies in the posterior perisylvian region of the temporal lobe of the dominant hemisphere. (From Brain & Bannister, Clinical Neurology, 7th ed, p141; Kandel et al., Principles of Neural Science, 3d ed, p846)

The science of language, including phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, pragmatics, and historical linguistics. (Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed)

The sum or the stock of words used by a language, a group, or an individual. (From Webster, 3d ed)

A cognitive disorder marked by an impaired ability to comprehend or express language in its written or spoken form. This condition is caused by diseases which affect the language areas of the dominant hemisphere. Clinical features are used to classify the various subtypes of this condition. General categories include receptive, expressive, and mixed forms of aphasia.

The application of a concept to that which it is not literally the same but which suggests a resemblance and comparison. Medical metaphors were widespread in ancient literature; the description of a sick body was often used by ancient writers to define a critical condition of the State, in which one corrupt part can ruin the entire system. (From Med Secoli Arte Sci, 1990;2(3):abstract 331)

Includes both producing and responding to words, either written or spoken.

Communication through a system of conventional vocal symbols.

Conditions characterized by deficiencies of comprehension or expression of written and spoken forms of language. These include acquired and developmental disorders.

A cognitive disorder characterized by an impaired ability to comprehend written and printed words or phrases despite intact vision. This condition may be developmental or acquired. Developmental dyslexia is marked by reading achievement that falls substantially below that expected given the individual's chronological age, measured intelligence, and age-appropriate education. The disturbance in reading significantly interferes with academic achievement or with activities of daily living that require reading skills. (From DSM-IV)

The language and sounds expressed by a child at a particular maturational stage in development.

Conditions characterized by language abilities (comprehension and expression of speech and writing) that are below the expected level for a given age, generally in the absence of an intellectual impairment. These conditions may be associated with DEAFNESS; BRAIN DISEASES; MENTAL DISORDERS; or environmental factors.

The act, process, or an instance of narrating, i.e., telling a story. In the context of MEDICINE or ETHICS, narration includes relating the particular and the personal in the life story of an individual.

The gradual expansion in complexity and meaning of symbols and sounds as perceived and interpreted by the individual through a maturational and learning process. Stages in development include babbling, cooing, word imitation with cognition, and use of short sentences.

Measurement of parameters of the speech product such as vocal tone, loudness, pitch, voice quality, articulation, resonance, phonation, phonetic structure and prosody.

The science or study of speech sounds and their production, transmission, and reception, and their analysis, classification, and transcription. (Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed)

Imaging techniques used to colocalize sites of brain functions or physiological activity with brain structures.

Lower lateral part of the cerebral hemisphere responsible for auditory, olfactory, and semantic processing. It is located inferior to the lateral fissure and anterior to the OCCIPITAL LOBE.

Ability to make speech sounds that are recognizable.

The teaching or training of those individuals with hearing disability or impairment.

A receptive visual aphasia characterized by the loss of a previously possessed ability to comprehend the meaning or significance of handwritten words, despite intact vision. This condition may be associated with posterior cerebral artery infarction (INFARCTION, POSTERIOR CEREBRAL ARTERY) and other BRAIN DISEASES.

Non-invasive method of demonstrating internal anatomy based on the principle that atomic nuclei in a strong magnetic field absorb pulses of radiofrequency energy and emit them as radiowaves which can be reconstructed into computerized images. The concept includes proton spin tomographic techniques.

Tests designed to assess neurological function associated with certain behaviors. They are used in diagnosing brain dysfunction or damage and central nervous system disorders or injury.

Intellectual or mental process whereby an organism obtains knowledge.

Behavioral manifestations of cerebral dominance in which there is preferential use and superior functioning of either the left or the right side, as in the preferred use of the right hand or right foot.

Auditory and visual instructional materials.

Documents describing a medical treatment or research project, including proposed procedures, risks, and alternatives, that are to be signed by an individual, or the individual's proxy, to indicate his/her understanding of the document and a willingness to undergo the treatment or to participate in the research.

Skills in the use of language which lead to proficiency in written or spoken communication.

An imagined sequence of events or mental images, e.g., daydreams.

Learning to respond verbally to a verbal stimulus cue.

Use of sound to elicit a response in the nervous system.

A progressive form of dementia characterized by the global loss of language abilities and initial preservation of other cognitive functions. Fluent and nonfluent subtypes have been described. Eventually a pattern of global cognitive dysfunction, similar to ALZHEIMER DISEASE, emerges. Pathologically, there are no Alzheimer or PICK DISEASE like changes, however, spongiform changes of cortical layers II and III are present in the TEMPORAL LOBE and FRONTAL LOBE. (From Brain 1998 Jan;121(Pt 1):115-26)

A general term for the complete loss of the ability to hear from both ears.

Mental activity, not predominantly perceptual, by which one apprehends some aspect of an object or situation based on past learning and experience.

The ability to speak, read, or write several languages or many languages with some facility. Bilingualism is the most common form. (From Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed)

Acquired or developmental cognitive disorders of AUDITORY PERCEPTION characterized by a reduced ability to perceive information contained in auditory stimuli despite intact auditory pathways. Affected individuals have difficulty with speech perception, sound localization, and comprehending the meaning of inflections of speech.

Lists of words to which individuals are asked to respond ascertaining the conceptual meaning held by the individual.

A type of fluent aphasia characterized by an impaired ability to repeat one and two word phrases, despite retained comprehension. This condition is associated with dominant hemisphere lesions involving the arcuate fasciculus (a white matter projection between Broca's and Wernicke's areas) and adjacent structures. Like patients with Wernicke aphasia (APHASIA, WERNICKE), patients with conduction aphasia are fluent but commit paraphasic errors during attempts at written and oral forms of communication. (From Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, p482; Brain & Bannister, Clinical Neurology, 7th ed, p142; Kandel et al., Principles of Neural Science, 3d ed, p848)

Degree to which individuals have the capacity to obtain, process, and understand basic health information and services needed to make appropriate health decisions.

A cognitive process involving the formation of ideas generalized from the knowledge of qualities, aspects, and relations of objects.

Movement of a part of the body for the purpose of communication.

Remembrance of information for a few seconds to hours.

A language dysfunction characterized by the inability to name people and objects that are correctly perceived. The individual is able to describe the object in question, but cannot provide the name. This condition is associated with lesions of the dominant hemisphere involving the language areas, in particular the TEMPORAL LOBE. (From Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, p484)

Those psychological characteristics which differentiate individuals from one another.

A system of hand gestures used for communication by the deaf or by people speaking different languages.

Character traits that are considered to be morally praiseworthy. (Bioethics Thesaurus)

The time from the onset of a stimulus until a response is observed.

The part of the cerebral hemisphere anterior to the central sulcus, and anterior and superior to the lateral sulcus.

The process by which individuals internalize standards of right and wrong conduct.

Transmission of emotions, ideas, and attitudes between individuals in ways other than the spoken language.

A technique of inputting two-dimensional images into a computer and then enhancing or analyzing the imagery into a form that is more useful to the human observer.

Electrical responses recorded from nerve, muscle, SENSORY RECEPTOR, or area of the CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM following stimulation. They range from less than a microvolt to several microvolts. The evoked potential can be auditory (EVOKED POTENTIALS, AUDITORY), somatosensory (EVOKED POTENTIALS, SOMATOSENSORY), visual (EVOKED POTENTIALS, VISUAL), or motor (EVOKED POTENTIALS, MOTOR), or other modalities that have been reported.

The process whereby auditory stimuli are selected, organized, and interpreted by the organism.

A statistical technique that isolates and assesses the contributions of categorical independent variables to variation in the mean of a continuous dependent variable.

Educational attainment or level of education of individuals.

Voluntary authorization, by a patient or research subject, with full comprehension of the risks involved, for diagnostic or investigative procedures, and for medical and surgical treatment.

Disorders of speech articulation caused by imperfect coordination of pharynx, larynx, tongue, or face muscles. This may result from CRANIAL NERVE DISEASES; NEUROMUSCULAR DISEASES; CEREBELLAR DISEASES; BASAL GANGLIA DISEASES; BRAIN STEM diseases; or diseases of the corticobulbar tracts (see PYRAMIDAL TRACTS). The cortical language centers are intact in this condition. (From Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, p489)

The exchange or transmission of ideas, attitudes, or beliefs between individuals or groups.

The process by which an observer comprehends speech by watching the movements of the speaker's lips without hearing the speaker's voice.

Dominance of one cerebral hemisphere over the other in cerebral functions.

The ability to attribute mental states (e.g., beliefs, desires, feelings, intentions, thoughts, etc.) to self and to others, allowing an individual to understand and infer behavior on the basis of the mental states. Difference or deficit in theory of mind is associated with ASPERGER SYNDROME; AUTISTIC DISORDER; and SCHIZOPHRENIA, etc.

The part of CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM that is contained within the skull (CRANIUM). Arising from the NEURAL TUBE, the embryonic brain is comprised of three major parts including PROSENCEPHALON (the forebrain); MESENCEPHALON (the midbrain); and RHOMBENCEPHALON (the hindbrain). The developed brain consists of CEREBRUM; CEREBELLUM; and other structures in the BRAIN STEM.

The knowledge or perception that someone or something present has been previously encountered.

Disturbances in mental processes related to learning, thinking, reasoning, and judgment.

Success in bringing an effort to the desired end; the degree or level of success attained in some specified area (esp. scholastic) or in general.

Use of written, printed, or graphic materials upon or accompanying a drug container or wrapper. It includes contents, indications, effects, dosages, routes, methods, frequency and duration of administration, warnings, hazards, contraindications, side effects, precautions, and other relevant information.

A form of frontotemporal lobar degeneration and a progressive form of dementia characterized by motor speech impairment and AGRAMMATISM, with relative sparing of single word comprehension and semantic memory.

Printed publications usually having a format with no binding and no cover and having fewer than some set number of pages. They are often devoted to a single subject.

The thin layer of GRAY MATTER on the surface of the CEREBRAL HEMISPHERES that develops from the TELENCEPHALON and folds into gyri and sulchi. It reaches its highest development in humans and is responsible for intellectual faculties and higher mental functions.

The process of discovering or asserting an objective or intrinsic relation between two objects or concepts; a faculty or power that enables a person to make judgments; the process of bringing to light and asserting the implicit meaning of a concept; a critical evaluation of a person or situation.

The field which deals with illustrative clarification of biomedical concepts, as in the use of diagrams and drawings. The illustration may be produced by hand, photography, computer, or other electronic or mechanical methods.

The phenomenon of an organism's responding to all situations similar to one in which it has been conditioned.

The assessing of academic or educational achievement. It includes all aspects of testing and test construction.

Personal names, given or surname, as cultural characteristics, as ethnological or religious patterns, as indications of the geographic distribution of families and inbreeding, etc. Analysis of isonymy, the quality of having the same or similar names, is useful in the study of population genetics. NAMES is used also for the history of names or name changes of corporate bodies, such as medical societies, universities, hospitals, government agencies, etc.

Tests designed to measure intellectual functioning in children and adults.

Conceptual functions or thinking in all its forms.

Methods and procedures for recording EYE MOVEMENTS.

Investigative technique commonly used during ELECTROENCEPHALOGRAPHY in which a series of bright light flashes or visual patterns are used to elicit brain activity.

The study of speech or language disorders and their diagnosis and correction.

Learning in which the subject must respond with one word or syllable when presented with another word or syllable.

Persons with any degree of loss of hearing that has an impact on their activities of daily living or that requires special assistance or intervention.

A concept that stands for or suggests something else by reason of its relationship, association, convention, or resemblance. The symbolism may be mental or a visible sign or representation. (From Webster, 3d ed)

Institutions for the housing and care of orphans, foundlings, and abandoned children. They have existed as such since the medieval period but the heading is applicable to such usage also in modern parlance.

The coordination of a sensory or ideational (cognitive) process and a motor activity.

The study of the precise nature of different mental tasks and the operations of the brain that enable them to be performed, engaging branches of psychology, computer science, philosophy, and linguistics. (Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed)

Images used to comment on such things as contemporary events, social habits, or political trends; usually executed in a broad or abbreviated manner.

Tests of the ability to hear and understand speech as determined by scoring the number of words in a word list repeated correctly.

Rehabilitation of persons with language disorders or training of children with language development disorders.

Congenital, or rarely acquired, herniation of meningeal and spinal cord tissue through a bony defect in the vertebral column. The majority of these defects occur in the lumbosacral region. Clinical features include PARAPLEGIA, loss of sensation in the lower body, and incontinence. This condition may be associated with the ARNOLD-CHIARI MALFORMATION and HYDROCEPHALUS. (From Joynt, Clinical Neurology, 1992, Ch55, pp35-6)

Focusing on certain aspects of current experience to the exclusion of others. It is the act of heeding or taking notice or concentrating.

The teaching or training of patients concerning their own health needs.

Recording of electric currents developed in the brain by means of electrodes applied to the scalp, to the surface of the brain, or placed within the substance of the brain.

Relatively permanent change in behavior that is the result of past experience or practice. The concept includes the acquisition of knowledge.

Voluntary authorization by a person not of usual legal age for diagnostic or investigative procedures, or for medical and surgical treatment. (from English A, Shaw FE, McCauley MM, Fishbein DB Pediatrics 121:Suppl Jan 2008 pp S85-7).

The selecting and organizing of visual stimuli based on the individual's past experience.

Persons who are enrolled in research studies or who are otherwise the subjects of research.

The detailed examination of observable activity or behavior associated with the execution or completion of a required function or unit of work.

Voluntary or reflex-controlled movements of the eye.

The ability to learn and to deal with new situations and to deal effectively with tasks involving abstractions.

The science that investigates the principles governing correct or reliable inference and deals with the canons and criteria of validity in thought and demonstration. This system of reasoning is applicable to any branch of knowledge or study. (Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed & Sippl, Computer Dictionary, 4th ed)

The electric response evoked in the CEREBRAL CORTEX by ACOUSTIC STIMULATION or stimulation of the AUDITORY PATHWAYS.

The region of the cerebral cortex that receives the auditory radiation from the MEDIAL GENICULATE BODY.

Complex mental function having four distinct phases: (1) memorizing or learning, (2) retention, (3) recall, and (4) recognition. Clinically, it is usually subdivided into immediate, recent, and remote memory.

A type of procedural memory manifested as a change in the ability to identify an item as a result of a previous encounter with the item or stimuli.

The artificial language of schizophrenic patients - neologisms (words of the patient's own making with new meanings).

A child who is receiving long-term in-patient services or who resides in an institutional setting.

Acquired or developmental conditions marked by an impaired ability to comprehend or generate spoken forms of language.

A condition characterized by long-standing brain dysfunction or damage, usually of three months duration or longer. Potential etiologies include BRAIN INFARCTION; certain NEURODEGENERATIVE DISORDERS; CRANIOCEREBRAL TRAUMA; ANOXIA, BRAIN; ENCEPHALITIS; certain NEUROTOXICITY SYNDROMES; metabolic disorders (see BRAIN DISEASES, METABOLIC); and other conditions.

Individuals enrolled in a school or formal educational program.

A barbiturate with hypnotic and sedative properties (but not antianxiety). Adverse effects are mainly a consequence of dose-related CNS depression and the risk of dependence with continued use is high. (From Martindale, The Extra Pharmacopoeia, 30th ed, p565)

Noise associated with transportation, particularly aircraft and automobiles.

A self-learning technique, usually online, involving interaction of the student with programmed instructional materials.

The measurement of magnetic fields over the head generated by electric currents in the brain. As in any electrical conductor, electric fields in the brain are accompanied by orthogonal magnetic fields. The measurement of these fields provides information about the localization of brain activity which is complementary to that provided by ELECTROENCEPHALOGRAPHY. Magnetoencephalography may be used alone or together with electroencephalography, for measurement of spontaneous or evoked activity, and for research or clinical purposes.

Those factors, such as language or sociocultural relationships, which interfere in the meaningful interpretation and transmission of ideas between individuals or groups.

The act or practice of literary composition, the occupation of writer, or producing or engaging in literary work as a profession.

Upper central part of the cerebral hemisphere. It is located posterior to central sulcus, anterior to the OCCIPITAL LOBE, and superior to the TEMPORAL LOBES.

A weight-carrying structure for navigation of the air that is supported either by its own buoyancy or by the dynamic action of the air against its surfaces. (Webster, 1973)

The act of "taking account" of an object or state of affairs. It does not imply assessment of, nor attention to the qualities or nature of the object.

Electronic hearing devices typically used for patients with normal outer and middle ear function, but defective inner ear function. In the COCHLEA, the hair cells (HAIR CELLS, VESTIBULAR) may be absent or damaged but there are residual nerve fibers. The device electrically stimulates the COCHLEAR NERVE to create sound sensation.

The continuous sequential physiological and psychological maturing of an individual from birth up to but not including ADOLESCENCE.

Treatment for individuals with speech defects and disorders that involves counseling and use of various exercises and aids to help the development of new speech habits.

Mental process to visually perceive a critical number of facts (the pattern), such as characters, shapes, displays, or designs.

Signals for an action; that specific portion of a perceptual field or pattern of stimuli to which a subject has learned to respond.

A negative shift of the cortical electrical potentials that increases over time. It is associated with an anticipated response to an expected stimulus and is an electrical event indicative of a state of readiness or expectancy.

Standardized tests that measure the present general ability or aptitude for intellectual performance.

The process whereby a representation of past experience is elicited.

The educational process of instructing.

A learning situation involving more than one alternative from which a selection is made in order to attain a specific goal.

Loss of the ability to comprehend the meaning or recognize the importance of various forms of stimulation that cannot be attributed to impairment of a primary sensory modality. Tactile agnosia is characterized by an inability to perceive the shape and nature of an object by touch alone, despite unimpaired sensation to light touch, position, and other primary sensory modalities.

Standardized tests designed to measure abilities, as in intelligence, aptitude, and achievement tests, or to evaluate personality traits.

An element with atomic symbol O, atomic number 8, and atomic weight [15.99903; 15.99977]. It is the most abundant element on earth and essential for respiration.

A meshlike structure composed of interconnecting nerve cells that are separated at the synaptic junction or joined to one another by cytoplasmic processes. In invertebrates, for example, the nerve net allows nerve impulses to spread over a wide area of the net because synapses can pass information in any direction.

A set of cognitive functions that controls complex, goal-directed thought and behavior. Executive function involves multiple domains, such as CONCEPT FORMATION, goal management, cognitive flexibility, INHIBITION control, and WORKING MEMORY. Impaired executive function is seen in a range of disorders, e.g., SCHIZOPHRENIA; and ADHD.

Conditions characterized by a significant discrepancy between an individual's perceived level of intellect and their ability to acquire new language and other cognitive skills. These disorders may result from organic or psychological conditions. Relatively common subtypes include DYSLEXIA, DYSCALCULIA, and DYSGRAPHIA.

The ability or act of sensing and transducing ACOUSTIC STIMULATION to the CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM. It is also called audition.

The moral obligations governing the conduct of research. Used for discussions of research ethics as a general topic.

Tests for central hearing disorders based on the competing message technique (binaural separation).

Vegetative state refers to the neurocognitive status of individuals with severe brain damage, in whom physiologic functions (sleep-wake cycles, autonomic control, and breathing) persist, but awareness (including all cognitive function and emotion) is abolished.