Background: Working memory allows the retention of a limited amount of information for a brief period of time and the manipulation of that information. This study was undertaken to compare possible differences in working memory between dyslexic and control children.
Methods: To test the executive central process that controls attention, subjects were requested to assemble a 100-piece puzzle. To test the phonological loop, subjects were requested to repeat orally a 10-item list with the following characteristics: digits spanning two numbers; phonologically similar words, and unfamiliar pseudowords. The visuo-spatial sketchpad was tested by means of assembling a 25-piece puzzle.
Results: Forty dyslexic and and forty control children were studied. Dyslexic children recall a lesser number of similar words in the phonological loop and spend a longer time in puzzle assembly in the visuo-spatial sketchpad. No statistical difference in the central executive process was found.
Conclusions: Present results suggest the importance of visuo-spatial and phonological loop alterations in dyslexic children that may result in difficulties with similar words and spatial information.