Mental retardation

From WikiLectures

Definition[edit | edit source]

  • aka. Intellectual disability, oligophrenia, Intellectual disability disorder (IDD) (name in the DSM-V)
  • It is a neurodevelopmental disorder, affects intellectual abilities
  • characterized by a decrease of cognitive skill, adaptive function (need help)

Etiology[edit | edit source]

  • genetic screening (only if you would terminate), part of a syndrome (fraglie X, down, cri du chat), acquired (cretinism, lead, alcohol)

Epidemiology[edit | edit source]

  • Prevalence: 1% of gen. population

Classification[edit | edit source]

  • mild mental retardation: IQ: 50-70, 6th grade, weak, need help
  • moderate mental retardation: IQ: 35-49: 3rd grade, must live supervised
  • severe mental retardation: IQ: 20-34: pre-school, must live in a nursing home
  • profound mental retardation: IQ: < 20: infant, total care

DX[edit | edit source]

  • IQ Testing (e.g. Hamburg-Wechsler IQ-test)
  • Screen for secondary causes: genetic testing, PKU, imaging methods, CBC, glucose...

Management (long-term)[edit | edit source]

  • Severity according to loss of adaptive function (not intelligence)
    • Psychotherapy ( CBT, family-oriented therapy)
    • Special education programs
    • Control psychiatric symptoms if concurrent: e.g. SSRIs

DDx[edit | edit source]

  • Specific learning disorder
    • e.g. just problems with reading (dyslexia), math (dyscalculia), spelling, writing...
    • are much more prevalent
    • should be present for more than 6 months
  • Hearing impairment, vision impairment, language impairment (e.g. English parallel)
  • Dementia: principal difference is that mental retardation is a neurodevelopmental disorder, in dementia a previously neurodevelopmentally healthy person deteriorates