Depressive and generalized anxiety disorder are associated with cognitive impairments affecting language and memory. Narrative speech may reflect underlying cognitive disruptions, suggesting that cognitive-linguistic measures could inform future research on intervention targets. This study compared relationships between cognitive functions (autobiographical memory, cognitive flexibility, working memory, problem-solving, attentional control) and narrative production across depressive, anxiety, and healthy groups. A cross-sectional study assessed 321 participants: depressive disorder (n = 146), anxiety disorder (n = 105), and healthy controls (n = 70). Diagnosis was confirmed using SCID-5. Participants completed cognitive tasks and two narrative tasks (picture description, autobiographical memory recall). Narrative responses were transcribed and analyzed across 14 linguistic features. Data were analyzed using multivariate statistics and structural equation modeling. The depressive group showed the greatest impairments in cognition and narrative coherence, followed by the anxiety group. Healthy controls performed best across all domains. Autobiographical memory strongly predicted narrative variables in healthy individuals, but this association was reduced in clinical groups. Narrative coherence, lexical cohesion, and sentence complexity were significantly linked to cognitive flexibility and memory across groups. The relationship between cognition and narrative speech is disrupted in depressive disorder and, to a lesser extent, in anxiety disorder. These findings highlight disrupted cognitive-linguistic integration in clinical groups, suggesting potential targets for cognitive remediation and clarifying cognitive mechanisms underlying language impairments in these disorders.

Background: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental condition associated with various cognitive and behavioral impairments that can significantly affect daily functioning and quality of life. Affected children often receive combined rehabilitative and pharmacological interventions to address their diverse needs, including therapies aimed at improving social skills, communication, and adaptive behaviors. This retrospective study compares communication abilities and disruptive behaviors in children with ASD treated with risperidone (RIS) versus those without pharmacological treatment, shedding light on the potential benefits and drawbacks of medication in this population. Understanding these dynamics is crucial for developing effective treatment strategies that can enhance the overall well-being of children with ASD. Objectives: This study constitutes a retrospective investigation designed to assess the impact of the medication RIS on the enhancement of communication skills and the reduction of disruptive behaviors. Methods: In this retrospective study, 80 participants aged 4 to 13 years were categorized into two equal groups: Forty children diagnosed with ASD who had received RIS group and 40 who had not received any pharmacological treatment (non-RIS group). Participants were assessed at a rehabilitation center in Tehran using the Children's Communication Checklist (CCC) and the Aberrant Behavior Checklist (ABC). Data were analyzed using SPSS version 20. Independent samples t-tests were conducted to compare group differences, and Pearson correlation analyses were used to explore associations between communication and behavioral variables. Results: Children in the RIS group demonstrated significantly lower levels of disruptive behaviors compared to the non-RIS group (P < 0.05). Communication skills scores were also significantly higher in the RIS group (P < 0.05). Subscale analysis supported these group-level differences. A moderate, non-significant inverse relationship was observed between communication and behavioral scores. Conclusions: This study highlights the beneficial effects of RIS in children with ASD, particularly in enhancing communication skills and mitigating disruptive behaviors. Findings have clinical relevance forASD rehabilitation professionals.

Purpose This study aims to compare cognitive functions and narrative speech abilities in Persian-speaking adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and typically developing (TD) peers. It also examined the relationships between these cognitive functions and narrative speech within each group.Design/methodology/approach A cross-sectional comparative design was used with 90 children aged 12-14 years (25 ASD, 25 ADHD, 40 TD). Cognitive assessment included the Stroop task for attention and the Auditory Verbal Learning Test for memory. Narrative speech was evaluated with a standardized Persian test.Findings Significant differences were found in memory recall, narrative speech and memory recognition, but not in attention. The TD group outperformed both clinical groups. The ADHD group performed better than the ASD group in these domains. Attention did not differ between clinical groups. No significant correlations were found between cognitive functions and narrative speech within the clinical groups.Research limitations/implications Findings indicate narrative deficits in ASD and ADHD stem from disorder-specific factors beyond basic cognition, emphasizing the need for tailored, multidimensional assessment and intervention.Originality/value This study contributes to limited Persian research on narrative abilities in neurodevelopmental disorders. It shows distinct cognitive-linguistic profiles in ASD and ADHD, where narrative impairments are not solely due to basic cognitive deficits. The results advocate for personalized intervention approaches based on each disorder's unique profile.

Background and Objective: Narrative discourse is a sensitive linguistic marker that may reveal cognitive changes in bilingual older adults. This study aimed to compare narrative discourse performance across Turkish–Persian bilingual elders with different levels of cognitive functioning. Materials and Methods: In this descriptive–analytical cross-sectional study, 122 bilingual older adults (healthy controls, mild cognitive impairment, Alzheimer's disease) were assessed. The mean age was 69.34 ± 7.44 years. Data were collected using the Persian Narrative Discourse Test, the Quick Mild Cognitive Impairment Screen, and the Geriatric Depression Scale. After confirming non-normal distribution with the Shapiro–Wilk test, nonparametric analyses, including Kruskal–Wallis, Mann–Whitney U, and Spearman correlations, were performed. Results: Four discourse parameters—sentence complexity, lexical cohesion, coherence, and total cohesive markers—showed significant differences across groups (P < 0.001). Most indices declined gradually from healthy to mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer's, while coherence showed a sharp decline only in the Alzheimer's group. Verbal errors did not differ significantly. In the MCI group, total cohesive markers showed a significant positive correlation with cognitive performance (rs = 0.317, P < 0.05). Conclusion: Narrative discourse measures serve as sensitive indicators for early detection of cognitive decline in bilingual older adults. Micro-level discourse markers are more useful for screening MCI, whereas coherence helps distinguish more advanced stages. Education can also play a role in the level of cognitive reserve. Discourse analysis offers a practical, low-cost tool for cognitive screening.

Background: Working memory is a core component of cognitive processing that supports complex language abilities, including narrative discourse. Age-related changes in working memory may affect older adults’ ability to organize and produce coherent and cohesive narratives. Objectives: This study examined the association between working memory and discourse in healthy older adults, focusing on coherence, cohesion, syntactic complexity, and verbal output errors. Methods: In this cross-sectional descriptive-analytical study, conducted from October to December 2023, 84 cognitively healthy older adults (44 females, 40 males) were recruited by convenience sampling from four nursing homes in Tehran. Working memory was assessed using the Wechsler Memory Scale and the N-back task. Narrative discourse was evaluated using the Persian Narrative Discourse Test and scored for coherence, cohesion, syntactic complexity, and verbal output errors. Statistical analyses were performed in SPSS 26, with significance set at P < 0.01. Results: Participants with formal education scored significantly higher on both working memory assessments (P = 0.001) and on measures of syntactic complexity, while committing fewer verbal errors (P = 0.003); however, education level showed no significant effect on discourse cohesion (P = 0.199) or coherence (P = 0.294). Pearson correlation analyses revealed strong positive associations between Wechsler working memory scores and discourse features, including coherence, cohesion, and syntactic complexity (P < 0.001). Conversely, working memory scores were significantly negatively correlated with verbal output errors (P = 0.001). Conclusions: This study highlights a direct relationship between working memory and narrative discourse abilities. The results support the hypothesis that stronger working memory is likely to enhance narrative discourse production in older adults.

Sleep spindles and the temporal organization of sleep are essential for restorative and cognitive functions, yet their disruption in obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) remains poorly understood. This study examined spindle density and duration across sleep cycles in 30 OSA patients and 22 controls using full-night polysomnography. While total sleep time and stage proportions were similar between groups, sleep efficiency and arousal index worsened with OSA severity. Spindle duration in N2 was significantly reduced in moderate OSA, particularly at frontal sites, with a Group × Cycle interaction indicating altered temporal dynamics, with a significant difference primarily observed in the first sleep cycle. In N3 sleep, spindle density was significantly reduced in severe OSA compared to controls during the fourth sleep cycle. However, no significant group × cycle interaction was observed, indicating limited evidence for progressive spindle density decline with increasing OSA severity. These findings suggest that OSA severity impacts specific temporal aspects of spindle dynamics during the night, yet the alterations are stage-, cycle-, and severity-dependent rather than progressive across severity levels, emphasizing the potential cognitive and clinical relevance of disrupted spindle activity in OSA. Further research is warranted to clarify the mechanisms by which OSA affects sleep spindle modulation.

Background and Aims:Restricted and repetitive behaviors (RRBs) are fundamental characteristics of autism spectrum disorders (ASD). There is a need for a reliable and valid instrument to evaluate the diversity of RRBs and assess their severity. The Repetitive Behavior Scale-Revised (RBS-R) is a recognized tool for screening RRBs. This study aims to investigate the psychometric properties of the RBS-R questionnaire in Iran by identifying children with ASD who have Persian-speaking parents. Methods:In this case-control study conducted in 2024 in Hamadan, 160 children were included: A case group diagnosed with autism (25 girls, 52 boys) and a control group of healthy volunteer children (30 girls, 53 boys) aged 4-12 years. The ASD group exhibited a minimum mean length of utterance (MLU) of 2. Participants diagnosed with intellectual disabilities were excluded from the study. The study assessed the reliability, content validity, and face validity to evaluate the psychometric properties of the tool. Exploratory factor analysis was used to identify questionnaire subscales. All assumptions, including the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) test, Bartlett's test, and question correlations, were checked. Subscales were extracted using ordinary least squares (OLS) and Equamax rotation, with the number of subscales determined based on the Scree plot method and eigenvalues greater than 1. Results:The study identified six factors (aggressive, focused and self-harming, resistant to change, obsessive, ritualistic, and insistent), which together explained 51.082% of the total variance. The Cronbach's alpha value for the Persian version of RBS-R was reported as 0.924. The questionnaire showed a sensitivity of 88.31%, specificity of 83.13%, positive predictive value of 82.93%, negative predictive value of 88.46%, and an area under the curve of 91.7%. The selected cutoff value in this study was determined to be 17.5. Conclusion:The Persian version of the RBS-R is valid and reliable. It also demonstrated acceptable internal consistency and sensitivity, suggesting that it can be used as a screening measure for ASD in Iran.

INTRODUCTION:The LittlEARS Early Speech Production Questionnaire (LEESPQ) assesses preverbal and early verbal communication in children from birth to 18 months. This study validates the Farsi LEESPQ for Iranian infants. METHODS:The LEESPQ was translated into Farsi and back-translated for accuracy. Content validity was reviewed by experts. A sample of 180 monolingual Farsi-speaking infants (birth-18 months; 10 per month) with typical hearing completed the questionnaire via their parents. We evaluated internal consistency, test-retest reliability, and criterion validity (correlation with age). Gender effects were also explored. RESULTS:The Farsi LEESPQ showed excellent internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.876). Age positively correlated with total scores ( 0.001), reflecting expected developmental progression. No significant gender differences were found. Age-specific normative percentile curves and minimal expected score thresholds were established. CONCLUSIONS:The Farsi LEESPQ is a reliable and valid tool for monitoring early speech development in Iranian infants up to 18 months, expanding applicability across linguistic and cultural contexts for early detection of delays.

Background: Most people with profound hearing loss have problems in speech intelligibility that related to their phonological ability and linguistic skill. The objectives of this research are to assess the clarity of speech and the complexity of words in children with hearing impairments who use cochlear implants (CI) and those who use hearing aids (HA). Objectives: Additionally, it aims to explore the connection between speech clarity and word complexity in these children. Methods: A total of fifty children with hearing loss (average age = 4.5 ± 0.8 years) were divided into two equal groups: One group consisting of 25 children with CI and another group with 25 children using hearing aids. Speech intelligibility of participants was evaluated by the repetitive word list. The criterion for examining the word complexity was the syllable number of each word. Results: The results showed that the CI group had better speech intelligibility than the HA group. There is a significant positive correlation between word complexity and speech intelligibility in hearing impaired children (P < 0.001). Conclusions: According to the results of this study, the CI children showed better speech intelligibility than HA because of the effectiveness of implantation on auditory input. On the other hand, the word complexity also contributes to the level of speech intelligibility. Therefore, experts working in the field of management and clinical education of these children need to consider the word complexity and other factors affecting the speech intelligibility.

The aim of the current study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Emotion Regulation and Social Skills Questionnaire (ERSSQ) among young Farsi-speaking individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in Iran. This cross-sectional study analyzed data from 108 children and teenagers (aged 7 to 14 years; mean age = 10.55 years, 91

Autistic people have different prosodic production. The aim of this study was to explain the differences in acoustic features of narrative speech between Farsi-speaking children with ASD and children with typical development (TD). Two types of speech sample included narrative speech (by picture and story retelling) and imitative speech (repeating declarative, interrogative, and emotional sentences) of participants (16 with ASD and 29 with TD) that were recorded were subjected to analysis through the utilization of the PRAAT software. The Persian Discourse Assessment Tasks used to assess narrative speech. The study shows differences between the two groups in terms of speech rate and speech duration during story retelling and picture description. Specifically, it is noted that the speech duration in children with autism is greater than that in typically developing children, and their speech rate is lower than that of typically developing children. According to the findings of this study, there were no significant differences in most acoustic features (such as vowel formants, formant bandwidths, fundamental frequency, etc.) between the two groups of children with autism and controls.

Background: Blood transfusion has some complications known as transfusion-related reactions. Accurate identification and recording of these reactions is more important for their management and prevention. This study aimed to evaluate blood transfusion-related reactions in blood recipients in patients in Hamadan Besat hospital during 2020-2022. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, the data of 400 patients who had complications after receiving blood and blood components were collected in terms of hemolytic and non-hemolytic blood transfusion reactions. Data were collected from patients’ medical records and standard blood transfusion checklists and analyzed by SPSS version 26 software using the chi-square test and Fisher’s exact test. Results: Red blood cell (RBC), 70.25%, random donor platelet (RDP), 10.3%, and fresh frozen plasma (FFP), 9.5%, were the most transfused blood components. Blood transfusion reactions were allergic reactions (53.5%), febrile non-hemolytic transfusion reaction (FNHTR) (24%), dyspnea (10.25%), hemolytic reactions (HR) (4.5%), hypotension (4.25%), transfusion-associated cardiovascular overload (TACO) (1.75%), and other reactions (2.75%). A significant relationship was also observed between receiving components containing RBC, including whole blood (WB0), RBC concentrate, and leukoreduced RBC, and the incidence of FNHTR (P=0.001). Conclusion: Based on the findings of the present study, allergic reaction and FNHTR were the most common complications after blood transfusions. Blood transfusion-related reactions could be predicted, managed, and possibly prevented by considering the relationship between the type of reaction and the type of transfused blood components.

Introduction. Disability to recognize emotional and mental states from other people’s facial expressions is acknowledged as one of the major developmental-behavioral problems in autistic children. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the effect of traditional and computer emotional facial training on the recognition of facial emotional states in children with autism and mother-child relation and parental competence in mothers of autistic children. Material and Methods. The present was clinical trial study. The children in the both groups were trained during 10 sessions. In traditional group children training using 40 images related to four situations as happiness, sadness, anger, and fear. The children in the computer group trained with the Let’s Face It software. These questionnaires were completed one day before and one day and one week after performing the intervention. The data were analyzed using SPSS software. Results. Findings showed that emotional state training has improved the identification of emotional states (p = 0.01), mother-child relation (p = 0.001) and parental competence (p = 0.001) in the both groups. There was also a statistically significant difference between the scores of identifying face emotional states (p = 0.01), mother-child relation (p = 0.001) and parental competence (p = 0.001) in the both groups. But training in traditional group was effectiveness than computer grope. Conclusion. Teaching emotional face to children with autism improved the recognition of emotional states by these children, and subsequently improved the mother-child relationship and motherly sense of competence in the mothers of these children.

: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) begins in early childhood and has short-term and long-term effects in later life. Deficits in social communication, social interaction, and limited and repetitive behaviors characterize this disorder. We aimed to develop and design a registration system for ASD patients in Hamadan Province to have comprehensive and valuable epidemiological data for researchers about the frequency, distribution, and causes of ASD. This epidemiological information can help target prevention measures and plan care. By designing and developing a patient registry system for ASD, valuable uniform epidemiological information about the web of causes and consequences of ASD is available. The next step is to utilize valid and reliable information for public health, clinical, or policy purposes.

Background Previous studies have been showed an association between previous abortion history and risk of Autism spectrum disorders (ASD). However, there is still controversy about true effect estimate of the association. Purpose This meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the association between previous abortion history and the risk of ASD. Methods A systematic search was performed using PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Sciences databases to identify potential studies published until December 2021. The presence of statistical heterogeneity was determined using the I2 value. In the case of substantial heterogeneity, the random-effects model meta-analysis was used to estimate the pooled relative risks. The publication bias was assessed using the Egger and Begg tests. Results Thirteen studies with a total of 331,779 children remained in the present meta-analysis. The estimated odds ratio of the risk of ASD associated with previous abortion history was 1.64 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.28–2.0; I2=61.7%) in adjusted studies and 1.10 (95% CI, 1.01–1.20; I2=0.0%) in crude studies, based on the random effect model. There was moderate heterogeneity in adjusted studies. The p values for Egger and Begg regression among children with ASD were 0.393 and 0.056, respectively. Conclusion This meta-analysis suggests that children born from mothers with a history of previous abortion have an increased risk of development of ASD compared to children of mothers without a history of previous abortion.

Objectives Numerous factors may affect the spoken language of children with a cochlear implant (CI). The present study is aimed to detect some of the possible predictors of speech and language outcomes among Persian-speaking cochlear-implanted childrenMaterials and methods A total of 211 pre-lingual deaf children who received a cochlear implant were entered in this cross-sectional study. The Persian version of Speech Intelligibility Measurement Test and Test of Language Development (TOLD: P3) were employed to determine speech and language scores. Eight probable predictors (variables) were divided into three groups: child-related, auditory-related, and environmental factors.Results The use of contra-lateral hearing aid only enhanced the speech intelligibility (p = .029); while having a background of speech therapy prior to CI raised the participants' language scores (p ≤ .041). Other factors predicted all speech and language indicators (p ≤ .025).Conclusion Speech-language therapists (SLTs) should inform parents about the positive or negative consequences of each pre-CI factor in post-operative speech and language outcomes.

People with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) show deficits in the processing of visual stimuli. This systematic review summarized the differences in visual event-related potential (ERP) components among ASD and typically developing individuals. Major databases were searched for finding eligible studies that investigated differences in visual ERP components between ASD and typically developing individuals. Sixty-three eligible studies were found. Analyses showed that the mean differences were significant between ASD and typically developing subjects for N100 amplitude at the anterior brain region for non-face stimuli, N170 amplitude and latency at the posterior brain region for face processing, and P200 latency at the posterior region. Characteristics of stimuli including the emotional content, predictability, familiarity and the reactions that participants were asked to perform during visual stimuli processing were all important confounding factors. The highlighted ERP components can be used as potential biomarkers for the future ASD detection systems. ERP analyses could obtain a promising tool for investigating the impaired visual information processing in ASD.

Objectives: The disability to recognize facial emotions is one of the behavioral problems in autistic children. This study was designed to evaluate the effect of education on the promotion of face recognition. Methods: This single-blind clinical trial study was conducted on children with autism. The participants were allocated with random sampling to the two groups. Autistic children in the intervention group were educated in 10 sessions with 40 facial emotions images, each session lasted 20 min. Autistic children in the control group underwent routine teaching. The assistant researcher completed the Benton questionnaire for each child before and after the study. The obtained data were analyzed with SPSS software, version 22. Results: This study showed that education on facial emotions has good effects on the recognition of facial expressions by children with autism. In addition, a significant difference is identified between the two study groups in identifying facial emotions (P<0.001). Discussion: Education to children with autism improved facial emotion identification. Therefore, according to the increase in children with autism all over the world such as in Iran, it seems that caregivers and health managers should review and use our study results for providing a supportive environment to promote recognition emotional states of the face and ultimately to improve the child’s treatment.