<p>The oral sensory ability in children can be assessed through test of intraoral stereognosis and two-point discrimination. Currently, these two tests are not frequently used in clinical settings, and normative data are not always available. The aim of this study was to establish normative data for these two tests in children aged 5;6 to 7;0 years. Further, intention was to compare the results with respect to age and gender. In total 103 children participated, 49 boys and 54 girls. The participants were divided into three age-groups. The results regarding intraoral stereognosis showed significant differences between genders, where boys performed poorer than girls. Differences between two of the three age-groups could also be established. The results show that an improvement can be expected in children six years and older.</p><p>Regarding two-point discrimination 73 of the 103 children performed perfectly. The remaining children’s scores were also consistently high. No differences between gender and age were found.</p><p>There was no correlation between the test results of intraoral stereognosis and two-point discrimination. Therefore it would be necessary to perform both these tests in assessment, since they probably examine two separate aspects of the oral sensory ability.</p><p> </p> / <p>Oral sensorisk förmåga hos barn kan bland annat utredas genom test av intraoral stereognosi och tvåpunktsdiskrimination. Dessa två test är i nuläget inte särskilt kliniskt utbredda, och normvärden saknas ofta. Föreliggande studie syftade till att fastställa normvärden för dessa två test hos barn mellan 5;6 och 7;0 år. Vidare jämfördes även testresultaten med avseende på åldersgrupp och kön. 103 barn deltog i studien, varav 49 var pojkar och 54 var flickor. Deltagarna delades in i tre åldersgrupper. Resultatet visade signifikanta könsskillnader på test av intraoral stereognosi, där pojkarnas resultat var något sämre än flickornas. Även skillnader mellan två av åldersgrupperna konstaterades gällande intraoral stereognosi. Resultatet visar att en förbättring på testet kan förväntas då barnen har fyllt sex år.</p><p>Angående test av tvåpunktsdiskrimination klarade 73 av de 103 barnen testet felfritt, och överlag presterade barnen mycket bra på testet. Inga skillnader mellan kön eller åldersgrupper noterades beträffande test av tvåpunktsdiskrimination.</p><p>Testresultaten av intraoral stereognosi och tvåpunktsdiskrimination korrelerade inte. Därför är det sannolikt nödvändigt att i utredning utföra båda testen, eftersom det kan röra sig om två olika aspekter av intraoral sensorik.</p><p> </p>

The oral sensory ability in children can be assessed through test of intraoral stereognosis and two-point discrimination. Currently, these two tests are not frequently used in clinical settings, and normative data are not always available. The aim of this study was to establish normative data for these two tests in children aged 5;6 to 7;0 years. Further, intention was to compare the results with respect to age and gender. In total 103 children participated, 49 boys and 54 girls. The participants were divided into three age-groups. The results regarding intraoral stereognosis showed significant differences between genders, where boys performed poorer than girls. Differences between two of the three age-groups could also be established. The results show that an improvement can be expected in children six years and older. Regarding two-point discrimination 73 of the 103 children performed perfectly. The remaining children’s scores were also consistently high. No differences between gender and age were found. There was no correlation between the test results of intraoral stereognosis and two-point discrimination. Therefore it would be necessary to perform both these tests in assessment, since they probably examine two separate aspects of the oral sensory ability. / Oral sensorisk förmåga hos barn kan bland annat utredas genom test av intraoral stereognosi och tvåpunktsdiskrimination. Dessa två test är i nuläget inte särskilt kliniskt utbredda, och normvärden saknas ofta. Föreliggande studie syftade till att fastställa normvärden för dessa två test hos barn mellan 5;6 och 7;0 år. Vidare jämfördes även testresultaten med avseende på åldersgrupp och kön. 103 barn deltog i studien, varav 49 var pojkar och 54 var flickor. Deltagarna delades in i tre åldersgrupper. Resultatet visade signifikanta könsskillnader på test av intraoral stereognosi, där pojkarnas resultat var något sämre än flickornas. Även skillnader mellan två av åldersgrupperna konstaterades gällande intraoral stereognosi. Resultatet visar att en förbättring på testet kan förväntas då barnen har fyllt sex år. Angående test av tvåpunktsdiskrimination klarade 73 av de 103 barnen testet felfritt, och överlag presterade barnen mycket bra på testet. Inga skillnader mellan kön eller åldersgrupper noterades beträffande test av tvåpunktsdiskrimination. Testresultaten av intraoral stereognosi och tvåpunktsdiskrimination korrelerade inte. Därför är det sannolikt nödvändigt att i utredning utföra båda testen, eftersom det kan röra sig om två olika aspekter av intraoral sensorik.

This collection of research examines how changes in the sensory landscape, mediated by both odor and hydrodynamic properties, impact odor-mediated predator-prey interactions in salt marsh communities. I approached this research using an interdisciplinary framework that combined field and laboratory experimentation to address issues of scale and make connections between predator behavior and patterns of predation in the field. I explored a variety of interactions mediated by changes in the sensory landscape including; indirect effects of biotic structure on associated prey, predator responses to patches of prey with differing density and distribution, and dynamic interactions between predators and prey distributions. I found that biotic structure (oyster reefs [Crassostrea virginica]) has negative indirect effects on associated hard clam prey (Mercenaria mercenaria) through the addition of oyster reef odor cues that attract predators (blue crabs [Callinectes sapidus] and knobbed whelks [Busycon carica])and increase foraging success near the structural matrix. Variation in the structure of patch-scale prey odor plumes created by multiple prey results in predator-specific patterns of predation as a function of patch density and distribution which are mediated by differences in predator sensory ability. There is a potential negative feedback loop between blue crab predators and hard clam prey distributions; clam patches assume random within-patch distributions after exposure to blue crab predators, making the detection of patches by future blue crab predators more difficult. Sensory landscapes are also mediated by water flow, which transports prey odor plumes downstream to predators. Characterization of water flow in small-scale estuary systems indicates that values of turbulent flow parameters are highly context specific and depend on both tidal type (spring, neap, normal) and site. Wind and tidal range seem to be good predictors for wave components and turbulent components of fluctuating flow parameters, respectively, although the strength of their predictive ability is dependent on time scale. Modifications of the sensory landscape through changes in structurally-induced turbulence, mixing of individual plumes from multiple prey, and bulk velocity and turbulence characteristics need to be considered when formulating predictions as to the impact of predators on naturally occurring prey populations in the field.