Short Report: Exploring the extent to which Intellectual Disability is undiagnosed within children attending developmental paediatric clinics

Delahuntly, Lauren, O'Hare, Anne, Marryat, Louise, Stewart, Tracy M., McKenzie, Karen, Murray, George and Kaza, Nandita (2022) Short Report: Exploring the extent to which Intellectual Disability is undiagnosed within children attending developmental paediatric clinics. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 131. p. 104359. ISSN 0891-4222

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Abstract

Intellectual Disability is under-ascertained worldwide and is associated with greater physical and mental health difficulties. This research aimed to identify clinical features and characteristics of children with Intellectual Disability in a population of 126 6–18 year olds in mainstream school, attending paediatric developmental clinics. Intellectual Disability was defined according to the DSM-5 (deficits in intellectual and adaptive functioning, present during childhood). Measures used to assess this were WISC-IV IQ (score <70) and ABAS adaptive behaviour (score =<70). Clinical features were compared from a structured clinical records investigation and logistic regression explored which factors were associated with Intellectual Disability. Twenty-eight children (22%) met the criteria for Intellectual Disability. Five variables were associated with higher odds of having Intellectual Disability: no other neurodevelopmental diagnosis, multiple other health problems, prior genetic testing, maternal smoking during pregnancy, and parental unemployment. Routinely-collected paediatric data only predicted Intellectual Disability correctly in two out of five cases. Further research is needed to verify these findings and improve identification.

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