Childhood predictors of written expression in late adolescents with 22q11.2 deletion syndrome: a longitudinal study.

The study used a single testing episode at each time point to describe writing, so a single test score may not capture everyday writing ability. The data came from a larger study about psychosis risk, not written expression, so measures such as fine motor skills were not included. The community control group included people with ADHD or learning disabilities, so the control findings should not be read as typical development. The study did not know whether participants had individualised education plans or other interventions before or during the study, so intervention history may have influenced scores. For participants who joined at Time 2, Time 1 scores were imputed from Time 2 scores, which may affect the childhood predictor analyses. Different intelligence tests were used depending on age, with WISC-III for younger participants and WAIS-III for older participants, which may have affected analyses involving IQ. The study is observational, so significant predictors are associations, not proof that a deficit causes poor writing or that treating it will help.

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