Memory and neuropsychology in Down syndrome

This paper outlines the strengths and weaknesses in both short-term and long-term memory in Down syndrome, and the implications of these patterns for both other aspects of cognitive development and underlying neural pathology. There is clear evidence that Down syndrome is associated with particularly poor verbal short-term memory performance, and a deficit in verbal short-term memory would be expected to negatively affect aspects of language acquisition, particularly vocabulary development. Individuals with Down syndrome also show impaired explicit long-term memory for verbal information, and may also have particular problems in explicit long-term memory for visual-object associations. However, implicit memory appears to be less affected in Down syndrome, and may therefore provide an important basis for intervention approaches. These findings are consistent with the suggestion of dysfunction within the hippocampal system in Down syndrome, and problems in verbal memory may be linked to impaired functioning of pre-frontal brain regions.