Research on dyslexia in children has largely focused on languages with deep orthography, limiting its applicability to transparent orthographies like Bosnian. This study examined handwriting characteristics in children with dyslexia, comparing them to a control group of typically developing children (CA) and a spelling level-matched group (SL). A range of tasks was used, varying from basic motor and graphomotor skills (e.g., writing names) to higher-level cognitive tasks (e.g., writing the alphabet). Dictation of isolated words was included to analyse the relationship between temporal handwriting features and spelling accuracy. Writing durations for real words, nonwords, and pseudowords were compared to identify cognitive strategies used by children with dyslexia. Results showed that children with dyslexia had significantly longer writing durations, slower pen speeds, more frequent and longer pauses, and fewer correctly written letters than both CA and SL groups. In the dictation task, they performed worse than the CA group across all word types. During text writing, they paused more often, especially between words. These findings offer important insights into the handwriting challenges faced by children with dyslexia in transparent orthographic systems and highlight the need for tailored support.

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a common neurodevelopmental disorder that affects the entire personality and is most often diagnosed during school age. The Tomatis Method involves neurosensory brain stimulation through unique listening programs. The aim of this study was to examine the impact of the Tomatis Method on the attention of a child with ADHD. The listening program was tailored to the child's specific needs and was administered by a certified Tomatis practitioner. Each treatment cycle lasted 14 days. The assessment was conducted at four time points: before and after the first cycle, and before and after the second cycle of the Tomatis treatment. A software-based assessment tool specifically designed to evaluate components of executive functions was used to measure attention. The collected data were processed using IBM SPSS Statistics 21 software for statistical analysis. Basic statistical parameters were calculated. The results showed improvements in attention-related abilities, including increased response accuracy and faster reaction times. Key words:Tomatis Method, ADHD, attention.

Background: Aphasia is an acquired communication disorder that affects language comprehension and production, typically occurring after brain damage. It is a frequent clinical manifestation of both benign and malignant brain tumors, particularly when lesions are localized in language-dominant areas. Objective: To assess the prevalence and characterize the types of aphasia in patients with intracranial tumors, emphasizing its clinical significance and the importance of early speech-language evaluation. Methods: This prospective study included patients with confirmed brain tumors diagnosed through neuroimaging (CT or MRI of the neurocranium), who were hospitalized at the Clinic of Neurosurgery, University Clinical Center Tuzla, over a one-year period. Patients with pre-existing aphasia of any etiology, as well as those who had not acquired reading and writing skills, were excluded. All assessments were performed prior to surgical intervention using the Boston Diagnostic Aphasia Examination. Results: Aphasia was diagnosed in 25 patients (27.5%). The most common type was anomic aphasia in 10 patients (40%), followed by Broca’s aphasia in 7 patients (28%), transcortical motor aphasia in 3 patients (12%), and transcortical sensory aphasia in 1 patient (4%). The highest number of patients with aphasia had tumors localized in the left temporal lobe, followed by the parietal and temporoparietal regions. Conclusion: Aphasia is a common clinical finding in patients with intracranial tumors, affecting more than one-quarter of the studied population. The distribution of aphasia types is consistent with the localization of lesions in language-dominant areas, particularly the left temporal lobe. Early recognition and detailed speech-language assessment are essential for timely intervention, rehabilitation planning, and optimizing functional outcomes.

Background: The clinical manifestations of cerebrovascular diseases (CVD) depend on the localization of the damaged region in the brain. Cognitive functions are often impaired following a stroke. Initially, CVD was referred to as atherosclerotic dementia, and was distinguished from senile dementia. Objective: The aim of this study was to examine how stroke severity and localization influence the development of vascular dementia (VD) and to identify which cognitive functions are impaired in certain types of VD. Methods: This prospective study included patients with acute stroke who were hospitalized at the Department of Neurology Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina, over a one-year period. Patients were divided into the following groups: dementia of strategic infarct (DSI), cortical dementia (CD), subcortical dementia (SCD), haemorrhagic dementia (HD) and non-demented patient (NDP). Stroke localization, side and number of lesions were analyzed. Results: A total of 274 stroke patients were analyzed, of whom 190 (69%) were diagnosed with some type of VD. The odds ratio (OR) for the occurrence of dementia per point increase in NIHSS on admission was 1.131 (95% CI; 1.056 – 1.210). CD was more common in patients with right hemisphere lesions (p<0.000), whereas SCD was more frequent in those with bihemispheric lesions (p<0.0001). All assessed cognitive functions were significantly associated with CD and SCD (p<0.000). Visual perceptual (p=0.007) and visual constructive (p=0.016) functions were significantly impaired in patients with DSI. Executive functions were significantly impaired in all demented patients (p<0.0001). Conclusion: Stroke localization has a significant impact on the development of vascular dementia. All analyzed cognitive functions are significantly impaired in cortical and subcortical dementia. Visual perceptual and visual constructive functions are particularly impaired in patients with dementia of strategic infarct.

The aim of this study was to analyze various environmental factors influencing dyslexia to enhance our understanding of its risk factors, including the exposure of mothers of dyslexic children to potential negative developmental influences, perinatal and postnatal developmental characteristics of dyslexic children, genetic predisposition, socioeconomic status, and reading exposure in dyslexic children.Mothers of both dyslexic and non-dyslexic children took part in the study. The home literacy environment and the development of motor skills emerge as significant risk indicators for dyslexia. These findings hold profound implications for public health, emphasizing the critical importance of early childhood in providing children with the best possible educational opportunities.Key words:risk factors, dyslexia, child development, developmental influences, home literacy environment

The objective of this research was to investigate impulsivity among children with dyslexia and comorbid dyslexia/ADHD. Children with these disorders, along with a non-ADHD/dyslexia sample, completed a self-report on impulsivity. Additionally, a specific impulsivity scale was completed by the children's parents and teachers. The analysis revealed a main effect for groups, indicating that children with dyslexia and comorbid dyslexia/ADHD reported more symptoms of impulsivity than normally achieving children. Furthermore, differences were identified between children with dyslexia and those in the comorbid dyslexia/ADHD group. Specifically, children with comorbid dyslexia/ADHD exhibited more impulsive behavior than children with dyslexia alone. Notably, there was a high level of consensus in ratingsof impulsivity between children and their teachers and parents.Keywords:dyslexia, ADHD, impulsivity

Introduction. A newly discovered SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes an infectious disease called Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has spread around the world. Objectives. The study aims to explore the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on speech-language pathologists (SLPs) clinical service delivery. Accordingly, this study aims to determine which modifications were used in the provision of speech-language pathology (SLP) services and which procedures were used by SLPs in their clinical practice in Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) during the third pandemic wave. The second aim of the study was to analyze how many SLPs from B&H used telepractice and what are the barriers to performing this type of work. Methods. The study included 107 SLPs, who voluntarily joined the survey, after sending the questionnaire directly to the e-mail or placing the questionnaire in online SLPs groups. The survey comprised questions to assess participants' demographics, personal protective equipment, procedures, provision of telepractice, and barriers and limitations to telepractice implementation. Results. Results showed that 93.4% of SLPs reported they use measures to prevent and control the COVID-19 pandemic. Only 28% of SLPs used telepractice in their work, which is a very low rate. The majority of SLPs (59.2%) reported that they did not receive the appropriate education about using telepractice. Conclusion. The COVID-19 pandemic led to a change in service delivery by SLPs requiring them to modify their work or to provide services through telepractice.

The aim of this paper was to analyze the spelling errors of children with dyslexia, in order to determine whether they have a specific pattern of spelling errors or are simply late in acquiring spelling skills. The sample included 30 children with dyslexiaand 30 spelling-level-matched younger children. The research was conducted in the area of Sarajevo Canton and Tuzla Canton in the period from March to May 2022. The results showed that children with dyslexia make similar patterns of errors as spelling-level-matched group. The obtained results show that children with dyslexia in transparent orthography do not have a specific deficit in spelling, but rather delay in acquiring spelling skills. Key words:dyslexia, transparent orthography, spelling errors, specific deficit, delay.

The main objective of the study was to determine the developmental abilities of preschool children before and after six months of speech therapy treatment, and to examine the impact of the time of initiation of speech therapy treatment on the developmental abilities of children. The sample consisted of 35 children (20 male children and 15 female children), and all respondents reported early intervention due to speech and language difficulties. The age of the respondents ranged from 25 to 60 months. After conducting interviews with parents, taking anamnestic data, professional speech therapy diagnosticobservational procedure and determining speech-language disorders, the children underwent speech therapy treatment. After six months, a final assessment was made and the results showed statistically significant progress in all variables describing developmental abilities in children. The predictor “Time of treatment initiation” also had a statistically significant impact on all tested variables of developmental abilities of preschool children. The results showed that speech therapy treatment enables significant progress in all developmental areas in children, i.e. that progress in one development area follows the development of other areas.