Spremembe v verbalni fluentnosti pri otrocih in mladostnikih, ki so preboleli Multisistemski vnetni sindrom (MIS-C) : magistrsko delo

Žunec, Nives (author), Masten, Robert (mentor), Gosar, David (comentor)

MIS-C je bolezen, za katero otroci in mladostniki zbolijo približno dva do štiri tedne po okužbi s COVID-19. Posledice MIS-C so zelo raznolike in vključujejo tako kognitivne kot nevrološke simptome, ki imajo lahko velik vpliv na posameznikovo vsakodnevno delovanje. Ena izmed posledic MIS-C naj bi bila tudi znižana besedna fluentnost, saj naj bi imeli posamezniki, ki so preboleli MIS-C, med drugimi tudi težave na področju delovnega in besednega spomina, hitrosti procesiranja in besednega razumevanja. To pa so tudi kognitivne sposobnosti, ki so pomembne za dobro opravljanje naloge besedne fluentnosti. Zato sem v raziskavi preučila ali imajo tudi otroci in mladostniki v Sloveniji, ki so preboleli MIS-C, nižje dosežke na testih besedne fluentnosti v primerjavi z zdravimi vrstniki. V raziskavo je bilo vključenih 49 udeležencev klinične skupine (posamezniki, ki so preboleli MIS-C; M = 12,3 let) ter 52 udeležencev kontrolne skupine (M = 12,6 let). V raziskavi sem uporabila test fonemske fluentnosti (črke S, I in T), test semantične fluentnosti (kategorije živali in predmeti), lestvico Besednega razumevanja (IBR), lestvico Hitrosti procesiranja (IHO) in podtest Razpon številk WISC-5 oziroma WAIS-IV ter Reyev test slušnega učenja (RAVLT). Statistično analizo sem naredila s pomočjo bayesovske regresijske analize v programih R in RStudio. Rezultati so pokazali, da so udeleženci klinične skupine našteli manj besed kot udeleženci kontrolne skupine v drugem (16-30s) in zadnjem (46-60s) časovnem intervalu pri črki I in pri kategoriji predmeti. V preostalih pogojih razlike med skupinama nisem opazila. Pri tem so imeli boljše dosežke na testih besedne fluentnosti tisti posamezniki, ki so imeli višje dosežke na IBR, preostali napovedniki (dosežki na IHO, podtestu Delovnega spomina ter RAVLT) pa niso prispevali k napovedovanju razlik v dosežkih besedne fluentnosti med skupinama. Kljub temu da rezultati niso konsistentni o vplivu MIS-C na besedno fluentnost in da je bilo vključeno majhno število udeležencev, pa rezultati magistrskega dela omogočajo boljše razumevanje posledic MIS-C in odpirajo nadaljnja vprašanja s tega področja.

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: besedna fluentnost, multisistemski vnetni sindrom MIS-C, COVID-19, otroci, mladostniki
• Work type: Master's thesis/paper
• Typology: 2.09 - Master's Thesis
• Organization: FF - Faculty of Arts
• Place of publishing: Ljubljana
• Publisher: [N. Žunec]
• Year: 2026
• Number of pages: 69 str.
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-178797
• UDC: 159.95:616-053.2(043.2)
• COBISS.SI-ID: 276337667
• Publication date in RUL: 30.01.2026

Secondary language

• Language: English
• Title: Changes in verbal fluency performance in children and adolescents post multisystem inflammatory syndrome (MIS-C)

Abstract

Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) is a condition that typically develops in children and adolescents approximately two to four weeks after a COVID-19 infection. The consequences of MIS-C are diverse and include both cognitive and neurological symptoms that can substantially affect an individual’s daily functioning. One of the consequences of MIS-C is said to be reduced verbal fluency, as individuals who have recovered from MIS-C reportedly experience, among other things, difficulties in the areas of working and verbal memory, processing speed, and verbal comprehension. These are also cognitive abilities that are important for performing well on verbal fluency tasks. The aim of this study was therefore to examine whether children and adolescents in Slovenia who recovered from MIS-C demonstrate lower performance on verbal fluency tests compared to their healthy peers. The study included 49 participants in the clinical group (individuals who recovered from MIS-C; M = 12.3 years old) and 52 participants in the control group (M = 12.6 years old). The assessment battery comprised a phonemic fluency test (letters S, I, and T), a semantic fluency test (categories animals and objects), the Verbal Comprehension Index (VCI), the Processing Speed Index (PSI), the Digit Span subtest from the WISC-V or WAIS-IV, and the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT). Statistical analyses were conducted using Bayesian regression in R and RStudio.The results indicated that participants in the clinical group produced fewer words than those in the control group during the second (16-30 s) and final (46-60 s) time intervals for the letter I and for the objects category. No group differences were observed in the remaining conditions. Higher scores on the Verbal Comprehension Index were associated with better verbal fluency performance, whereas the other predictors (Processing Speed Index, Working Memory subtest, and RAVLT scores) did not contribute to explaining group differences in verbal fluency outcomes. Although the results regarding the impact of MIS-C on verbal fluency are not consistent and the sample was small, the findings of the master’s thesis nevertheless provide a clearer understanding of the consequences of MIS-C and open further questions in this field.

• Keywords: verbal fluency, multisystem inflammatory syndrome MIS-C, COVID-19, children, adolescents