Reading-FREE Markers for Early Detection of Developmental Dyslexia

Composite score summarizing auditory-based sensorimotor, timing, discrimination, and inhibitory control abilities measured via the ReadFree Screening Tool (RFST) auditory modality tasks. Includes:

• Auditory Reaction Time (median RTs of 8 trials)
• Tapping and Entrainment to Metronome (tapping onset)
• Free Tapping (motor rhythm without auditory cue)
• Tone Discrimination (smallest perceptible pitch interval)
• Cocktail Party Task (d-prime, target detection in multitalker noise)
• Auditory Go/No-Go (d-prime, inhibition)
• Auditory Anticipatory Timing (tapping onset accuracy) Each task is z-scored and aggregated into a single composite. Higher scores indicate better auditory sensorimotor and temporal processing.

Composite score summarizing visual-based sensorimotor, discrimination, and inhibitory control abilities from the RFST visual modality tasks. Includes:

• Visual Reaction Time (median RTs of 8 trials)
• Tapping and Entrainment to Visual Cue (tapping onset)
• Free Tapping (motor rhythm without visual cue)
• Grey-Scale Discrimination (smallest perceptible luminance interval)
• Visual Go/No-Go (d-prime, visual inhibition)
• Visual Anticipatory Timing (accuracy of tapping onset)
• RAN-Shapes (number of shapes named in 30s) Each score is converted to z-units and averaged to yield a composite metric. Higher scores indicate better visual-motor and perceptual timing performance.

A standardized composite language score derived from z-transformed or scalar scores of the following assessments:

• Phoneme Deletion
• BVL Auditory Discrimination (HIT-False Alarm Index, range: -100% to +100%)
• NEPSY-II Subtests: L1, L3, L4, L5. The composite reflects mean z-scores (normalized against internal sample distribution) across all measures. Higher scores indicate better language functioning.

A composite attention score computed from standardized or scalar scores across the following assessments:

• Colored Raven Matrices (Percentiles by age: 3rd-95th)
• NEPSY-II Subtests:

• A1 Visual Search
• A2 Figural Fluency
• A3 Auditory Attention
• A4 Inhibition (Time; Accuracy)
• A6 Categorization Each test is converted to a z-score and averaged for a domain-wide summary score. Higher scores indicate better attention performance.

Composite score combining metrics from multiple timed and accuracy-based reading assessments:

• Lapel Reading Song (Words per minute: 21-157; Errors: 0-10)
• PIN Reading (Words and Pseudo-words):

• Reading Time
• Syllables/sec
• Number of Errors Each metric is z-normalized and averaged per task, then aggregated for a domain-level composite. Higher composite scores indicate better learning performance.

Resting-state functional connectivity-based modularity score, measuring the extent to which functional networks in the brain are subdivided into non-overlapping, highly interconnected communities. Higher modularity indicates greater network segregation.

Participation coefficient derived from resting-state fMRI data, quantifying the extent to which brain nodes form diverse intermodular connections. Higher participation coefficient reflects greater network integration and communication between functional modules.

The Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (Italian version) is administered to assess receptive vocabulary. Raw scores are calculated by subtracting errors from the ceiling value. Age-standardized scores are derived from the raw score based on national norms. This outcome reflects language comprehension ability at Grade 3.

This outcome reflects attentional functioning based on multiple neuropsychological measures, aggregated as a domain-level composite. Tests include:

• Mea Figural Fluency (percentiles)
• Mea Cancellation (Sheets 5 & 10) (percentiles)
• Mea PASOT (percentiles)
• Mea Categorization (percentiles)
• Colored Raven Matrices (age-based percentiles)
• BVN Forward and Backward Span (z-scores or percentiles by age)
• Prose Memory (number of correctly recalled morphological units; max 34)
• VAUMELF - Repetition of Non-Words (correctness score, range: 0-40) Each test score is standardized (z-transformed or percentile-normalized as appropriate) and averaged into a single composite score representing domain-level attentional performance. Higher composite values indicate better attention function.

This outcome reflects reading and learning-related cognitive performance based on the following assessments:

• MT3 Clinics Song Reading (Syllables/sec; number of errors; percentiles from 5th-90th)
• DDE-2 Reading Words (z-score of speed and accuracy)
• DDE-2 Reading Non-Words (z-scores of speed and accuracy)
• BVSCO-3 Sentence Dictation (total errors; percentiles from 5th-95th)
• AC-MT Judgment of Magnitude (number of correct responses; 5th-90th percentiles)
• BDE-2 Triplets (total correct responses; clinical bands and percentile ranks)

Each raw test score is converted to a standardized value (z-score or percentile), and the resulting values are averaged to produce a single composite score. Higher scores indicate better learning and reading competence.

Global efficiency is computed as the average inverse shortest path length across the entire resting-state functional connectivity network. It reflects the brain's capacity for parallel information transfer across distributed regions. Higher scores indicate greater global integration and reduced communication cost across brain regions.