TY - JOUR T1 - Reading treatment helps children with dyslexia and changes activity in language areas of the brain JF - Neurology JO - Neurology SP - E5 LP - E6 M3 - 10.1212/01.WNL.0000078769.20679.0E VL - 61 IS - 2 AU - Narayana, Shalini AU - Xiong, Jinhu Y1 - 2003/07/22 UR - http://n.neurology.org/content/61/2/E5.abstract N2 - Brain activation is what happens when different parts of the brain are doing work, or are active. When a part of the brain is active, it uses more oxygen. This can be studied using a brain imaging test called fMRI. When someone is reading, there is more activity in the language area of the brain. The figure shows a fMRI of a normal person reading. The arrows point to parts of the brain that are activated. Changes in brain activation patterns after treatment can also be studied using fMRI. This method is an important tool to study children because it is non-invasive (does not require injections and has no serious side effects). Figure. fMRI image of a normal person reading. The arrow points to the part of the brain that is activated. Why Use fMRI to Study Children with Dyslexia? Dyslexia is a learning disability that affects a person’s ability to read. Dyslexia is the most common learning disability in the U.S., affecting about 20% of Americans. We have just started understanding the specific problems in the brain that lead to dyslexia. People with dyslexia have different levels of brain activity and connections in the language area than people without dyslexia. Scientists believe that this leads to the problems with reading and spelling that dyslexic people have. In this issue of Neurology, Aylward and her colleagues examine the effects of reading treatment on brain activation in children with dyslexia. This study examined the differences in brain activity using fMRI in children with and without dyslexia while the children performed the same two language tasks. The dyslexic … ER -