Yonsei Med J.  1988 Dec;29(4):333-340. 10.3349/ymj.1988.29.4.333.

A Study of Clinical Diagnosis and Evaluation of Ability of Mentally Handicapped Children

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Pediatrics, Yonsei University, College of Medicine, Institute of Handicapped Children, Seoul, Korea.

Abstract

At The lnstitute of Handicapped Children, 1100 mentally handicapped children with the Griffiths Mental Development Scale (GQ) less than 8O were investigated during a 5 year period between January 1981 and December 1985 to determine the cause of their intellectual deficit, to diagnose their condition and to assess their ability. Of 1100 children, 776 (69.6%) were diagnosed clinically. Cerebral palsy was the most common cause (22.5%) followed by microcephaly (14.6%), seizure disorder (12.4%) and chromosomal anomaly (4.4%). Preventable disorders such as cerebral palsy, chromosomal anomaly, metabolic disorder and endocrinologic disorder were found in 314 cases (28.5%). It is emphasized that prenatal care, fetal monitoring, chromosomal study and a screening test for hypothyroidism and phenylketonuria are indeed required for prevention. When the Griffiths Mental Development Scale was used to assess the children's ability, 96.5% required medical and paramedical treatment such as education and training. In order to assess a mentally handicapped child completely, specialists from various fields are needed to work as a team in an assessment unit where knowledge from all fields can be concentrated. In addition, sociefy as a whole should become more interested in these affairs.

Keyword

Mentally handicapped children; assessment unit

MeSH Terms

Adolescent
*Aptitude
Child
*Child Development
Child, Preschool
Education of Mentally Retarded
Female
Human
Infant
Male
Mental Retardation/*etiology
Prognosis
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