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Dyslexia is the most common form of specific learning disabilities. Dyslexia is observed in 5-17.5 % of schoolchildren, and among children with specific learning disabilities, it accounts for about 70-80 %. Usually, dyslexia manifests itself as the inability to achieve an appropriate level of reading skills development that would be proportional to their intellectual abilities and writing and spelling skills. Secondary consequences of dyslexia may include problems in reading comprehension and reduced reading experience that can impede the growth of vocabulary and background skills. The review discusses neurological management of reading and writing as complex higher mental functions, including many components that are provided by various brain areas. The principles of dyslexia classification, the main characteristics of its traditionally defined forms are given: phonemic, optical, mnestic, semantic, agrammatic. The article analyzes the cerebral mechanisms of dyslexia development, the results of studies using neuropsychological methods, functional neuroimaging, and the study of the brain connectome. The contribution to dyslexia development of disturbances in phonological awareness, rapid automated naming (RAN), the volume of visual attention (VAS), components of the brain executive functions is discussed. The origin of emotional disorders in children with dyslexia, risk factors for dyslexia development (including genetic predisposition) are considered. Dyslexia manifestations in children are listed, about which their parents seek the advice of a specialist for the first time. In the process of diagnosing dyslexia, attention should be paid to the delay in the child’s speech development, cases of speech and language development disorders and specific learning disabilities among family members. It is necessary to consider possible comorbidity of dyslexia in a child with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, dyscalculia, developmental dyspraxia, disorders of emotional control and brain executive functions. Timely diagnosis determines the effectiveness of early intervention programs based on an integrated multimodal approach.

Introduction. Late and inaccurate diagnosis of tension-type headache (TTH) leads to the lack of timely rational treatment. In children and adolescents with TTH, the role of comorbid disorders that affect the course of TTH and can contribute to their chronification is not sufficiently taken into account. Meanwhile, with timely diagnosis and adequate treatment of TTH in many children and adolescents, a significant improvement in the disease’s course and the prognosis is achieved, and clinical remission is possible. Considering the high prevalence of TTH among children and adolescents, the decline in their quality of life, and the high frequency of comorbid disorders, it is reasonable to develop effective methods of preventive treatment for TTH in this age group. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of monotherapy with γ-amino-β-phenyl butyric acid hydrochloride, amitriptyline, or breathing gymnastics (comparison group) indicated for two months as a preventive treatment of TTH in children and adolescents in the open randomized comparative study in three parallel groups of patients. Material and methods. In an open parallel study, 90 TTH patients aged 8-16 years were divided into three groups of 30 patients (each with 15 boys and 15 girls). Results. Significant differences with the comparison group in the individual response to therapy were confirmed. According to the criterion of a 50% or more reduction in the average number of headache attacks per month in group 1 (γ-amino-β-phenyl butyric acid hydrochloride), the improvement was achieved in 56.7% of patients, in group 2 (amitriptyline) - in 73.3%, in the 3rd group (breathing gymnastics) - in 30%. According to a more strict criterion for reducing the average number of headache attacks per month by 75% or more, the response to therapy was observed in group 1 in 30%. In group 2 - in 23.3%, in group 3 - in 3.3% of patients. In groups 1 and 2, along with a significant decrease in the frequency, duration, and intensity of TTH attacks, a significant improvement in daily activity, a favorable effect on the manifestations of fatigue, anxiety disorders, and sleep disorders associated with TTH was demonstrated. The therapeutic efficacy of breathing gymnastics exercises complex was confirmed in the prevention of TTH with frequency, duration, and intensity reduction of TTH, and diminishing its impact on daily activity, a moderate decrease in manifestations of fatigue, anxiety disorders (by patients’ self-assessment), and improvement in sleep quality.

Introduction. MRI revealing the epileptogenic foci is the central part of the presurgical evaluation of children with focal-resistant epilepsy. Besides that, MRI seems to be a reliable instrument of treatment optimization and good prognosis. Aim. To identify epileptogenic lesions in children with resistant focal epilepsy by high resolution (HR) MRI and comparing obtained data with postsurgical morphology. Materials and methods. We assessed the results of neuroimaging, EEG, clinical neurological status, and postsurgical morphological data in 65 children with focal epilepsy who had undergone antiepileptic surgery in Russian State Children Hospital, neurosurgery department (Moscow, Russia) from 2016 to 2020. Results. The broad spectrum of epileptogenic lesions was revealed by HR MRI, including focal and diffuse cortical dysplasias (44.6%), cortical post hypoxic gliosis (27.7%), glial tumors (7.7%), Rasmussen encephalitis (10.8%), tuberous sclerosis, and Sturge-Weber syndrome (3%), small angiodysplasias (4.6%) and other. Focal cerebral dysplasia had an obvious superiority as the main etiological factor in focal epilepsy and was approved in 33.8% of all patients. In all cases, epilepsy is characterized by frequent and resistant seizures, inflicting motor arrest, and psycho-emotional deterioration. Conclusion. HR MRI and multidisciplinary investigation have to be unchangeable standards in the presurgical evaluation of children with focal epilepsy. This approach’s effectiveness has reassuring confirmation by high level (95.2%) of total coincidence MRI and morphological results.

Merosin-deficient muscular dystrophy is the most common form of congenital muscular dystrophies (СMD), characterized by genetic heterogeneity and a severe course in most cases. CMD pathogenesis is associated with a partial or complete absence of laminin 2 chains in the basal membrane of muscle fiber caused by a mutation in theLAMA2gene. The clinical manifestations of LAMA2-associated muscular dystrophy vary from severe СMD (СMD 1A) with an early onset to a relatively mild course with a late onset and phenotype of limb-girdle muscular dystrophy. CMD type 1A is characterized by a delay in motor development from the first months of the life (while the vast majority of children do not master the ability to walk independently), facial muscles weakness, ptosis, ophthalmoplegia, spine rigidity, early occurrence of contractures in the shoulder, elbow, hip and knee joints, restrictive respiratory disorders, nutritional problems, such as disorders of swallowing and chewing, gastroesophageal reflux, low body weight; some children suffer from mental retardation and epilepsy.

Hereditary neuromuscular diseases (HNMD) represent a large group of heterogenic morbid conditions, characterized by muscular weakness, muscular atrophies, disturbances of postural control and locomotor functions. Scientific research on HNMD, performed by academician L.O. Badalyan and his followers laid the background for solving many issues, regarding the diagnosis and treatment of these severe, progressive diseases. In many ways, academician L.O. Badalyan and his followers have anticipated the current understanding of pathogenic mechanisms of HNMD, which later were disclosed by means of modern molecular-genetic technologies. HNMD include progressive muscular dystrophies (PMD), spinal muscular atrophies (SMA), hereditary motor and sensory neuropathies, myopathic syndromes. The most prevalent progressive HNMDs are represented by dystrophinopathies (Duchenne PMD and Becker PMD) and limb girdle HNMD. The authors discuss experience and achievements in the studies of HNMDs and PMDs, conducted by academician L.O. Badalyan and his followers, as necessary prerequisites for the creation of modern approaches to genetic diagnostics of the diseases and forming their genetic registries, development of methods of etiopathogenetic therapy. Thanks to the accumulated experience and research there were discovered genes, which determine the HNMD development, pathogenic mechanisms of diseases with heterogenic clinical manifestations were studied. The data were accumulated for the formation of patients registries, determining groups for which a particular drug is being developed. The progress in genetic research has made it possible to identify more than 30 forms of limb-girdle PMD. A newly published classification of limb-girdle PMD is given, illustrating their genetic heterogeneity, the type of inheritance, the genetic locus of the mutation and defective protein are now taken into account. The article lists promising current global trends in the development of approaches to pathogenetic therapy of dystrophinopathies and limb-girdle PMD.