Developmental Status Of Children Research Articles

Prenatal and neonatal risk factors associated with children's developmental status at ages 4-7: lessons from the Jiangsu China birth defects prevention cohort.

There is limited information involving population data about the role of maternal health, fetal growth and neonatal health on children's developmental status at ages 4-7 years. Our aim was to determine the contribution of maternal, fetal and neonatal health to developmental status at ages 4-7 years. In this 7-year follow-up prospective cohort study, a sample of 26,803 mothers participated in the beginning. Among their children, 19,187 voluntarily completed the development screening test or the social life ability survey, which were designed for two different age groups (<6 or ≥ 6 years old, respectively). Logistic regression analysis was used to link the data with the prenatal outcome card and interview questionnaire applied to pregnant women in previous study, to the analysis of various related factors such as demographic, socio-economic, disease and menstrual history, marriage and pregnancy care. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis were used separately in two age groups [4-6 (n = 8439) and 6-7 (n = 10,748) years old] to analyse relative factors. Maternal age of 25-30 years, maternal education of high school and greater, family income and not drinking during pregnancy were associated with higher scores in development. Both preconception and pregnancy health education and health care are the important maternal factors closely associated with children's cognitive and social competence. Public health policies for preconception care and public welfare for high-quality childcare are essential for improving children's life.

A Brief Analysis of the Application of Green Textiles in Children’s Space Environment Design

This article starts from discussing the quality and security issues of children’s textiles inrecent years, then it analyzes the current application range of children’s textiles in their space environment, the development status of children’s green textiles and the application of children’s space environment. From the status quo and the perspective of domestic and abroad ecological standard of green textiles, the article emphasizes on the importance of green textiles application in children’s space environment designs. It also points out that green textiles will become the development direction of children’s textiles. Finally, it offers according strategies and suggestions.

The Design of Children's Multi-Function Carts Based on the Man-Machine Research

Based on the development status of children's carts in the market at present, we make the man-machine relations as the breakthrough point of the design to study and analyze the existing problems of children's carts. And we design a kind of carts with the functions not only can be pushed but also can be removed. It can not only realize the basic function of the carts but also can let the users achieve the purpose of parent-child interaction to increase the feeling between the parents and the children.

CDC Kerala 5: Developmental therapy clinic experience--use of Child Development Centre grading for motor milestones.

To document the experiences of the intervention given to children who attended the developmental therapy clinic of Child Development Centre (CDC) Kerala, a specialized clinic for providing developmental intervention/therapy for babies less than two years with developmental delay/disability. All the babies referred to this speciality clinic from developmental screening/evaluation clinics of CDC were registered in the clinic and re-evaluation was done using CDC grading for head holding, sitting, standing, Amiel Tison passive angles, and Trivandrum Developmental Screening Chart (TDSC) 0-2 y. Out of a total of 600 consecutive babies below 2 y with developmental delay/disability referred to developmental therapy clinic, on comparing the test results at enrollment and after 6 mo of intervention, a statistically significant reduction was observed (i) in the 2-4 mo age group with regard to abnormal TDSC (25.5%), (ii) in the 4-8 mo age group with regard to abnormal head holding grade (87.1%) and abnormal TDSC (19.4%), (iii) in the 8-12 mo age group, with regard to abnormal sitting grade (71.7%) and (iv) in the above 12 mo age group with regard to abnormal sitting grade (35.3%) and abnormal standing grade (78.8%). The experience of organizing the developmental intervention/therapy clinic at CDC Kerala has shown that therapy services by developmental therapists in a centre and supportive therapy by mother at home is useful in improving the developmental status of children with developmental delay.

Community Action Targeting Children who Are Homeless (CATCH): Addressing the Mental Health and Developmental Needs of Children Experiencing Homelessness

The purpose of this article is to describe a collaborative community project designed to enhance the mental health and development of children experiencing family homelessness. In spite of the many risk factors faced by children without homes, there has been limited attention to understanding and addressing their needs. Community Action Targeting Children who are Homeless (CATCH) was developed by a group of community leaders in family homelessness and experts in young children's mental health; the goal of CATCH is to promote the social–emotional adjustment and developmental status of children who are homeless. In this article we provide a rationale for the project, discuss the goals and strategies implemented to meet those goals, and describe the lessons learned.

Growth and Developmental Status of Children with Congenital Heart Disease

Cardiac malformations ore responsible for malnutrition, which may range from mild under nutrition to severe failure to thrive (FTT). Developmental delay was also associated with congenital heart disease. The aim of the study was to evaluate the nutritional status and developmental status of children with congenital heart disease. This cross sectional study was done in the department of Paediatrics, BSMMU and Dhaka Shishu Hospital from March'08 to February'09. Children, age 1 month to 6 years with congenital heart disease confirmed by echocardiogram (both cyanotic and acyanotic heart disease) were included in this study. Total 50 children included in this study. Mean age of study patient was 3.04 (±2.01SD) years. Ventricular septal defects were found as leading number (36%). Tetralogy of Fallot was found in 26% cases. According to WHO standard 38% children from acyanotic and 16%/rom cyanotic heart disease were severely stunted. Ten percent children from acyanotic and 04% from cyanotic heart disease were severely wasted. Gross motor and fine motor delay was present in 60% and 54% of children. Forty four percent children had speech delay and social impairment was present in 32% children. Severe stunting was more common than wasting in this study. Gross motor and fine motor delay was found the main developmental problem. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/bmj.v40i2.18512 Bangladesh Medical Journal 2011 Vol.40(2): 54-57

Socioemotional Development and its Correlates among 5-year-old Children in Peru and Brazil

Healthy socioemotional child development is universally gaining recognition as a crucial factor in life-time health. A teacher-completed measurement of child development status, the Early Development Instrument (EDI), was applied in seven communities in the state of Sao Paulo, Brazil, and in three communities in Peru to assess the social and emotional development of preschool children (4 to 6 years of age). In both countries indicators of socioeconomic status (SES) were collected together with the teacher-rated children's outcomes. Three main issues were addressed: (1) the validity of the measure used, (2) areas of socioemotional development that contribute most to children's vulnerability, and (3) the association between social and emotional outcomes and indicators of sociodemographic risk, such as age, gender, and SES. Results indicated high internal consistencies and test-retest validity in both countries. Moreover, similar patterns of vulnerabilities in relation to specific areas of socioemotional dev...

Possible negative effects of snoring and increased sleep fragmentation on developmental status of preschool children

Limited studies have investigated the effects of snoring although harmful neurocognitive effects of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome are relatively well known. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of snoring and fragmented sleep on mental development in preschool children. The study population consisted of 212 healthy preschool children (age range 3.1–6 years; mean = 5.4 ± 0.6 years; 112 boys, 100 girls). The developmental status of the children was investigated by using the Ankara Developmental Screening Inventory (ADSI) and Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PBT). Children’s sleep and snoring frequency were assessed by using parent completed Children’s Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ). Snoring children had lower scores of language/cognitive skills, social/activities of daily living skills, and general development compared to controls (P 0.05). Children with fragmented sleep had lower scores of language/cognitive skills, fine motor skills, social/activities of daily living skills, and general development compared to controls (P 0.05). Present study suggested that healthy preschool children who have habitual snoring or sleep fragmentation may have reduced scores of various mental development compared to controls. Uninterrupted sleep may be more important than sleep duration for the development of the various mental abilities in healthy preschool children. More studies investigating snoring and sleep fragmentation on mental development in children are warranted for a definite conclusion.

Does anyone need help? Age and gender effects on children's ability to recognize need-of-help.

The exploratory study presented here examines children's ability to recognize another person's need-of-help. This social perception process necessarily precedes the decision to actively help others. Fifty-eight children aged between 5 and 13 completed three experimental paradigms. They were asked to look at black-and-white drawings and to indicate which ones showed somebody in need of help. A control task requiring children to differentiate between pictures of humans and birds measured general categorization abilities. This experimental design enabled us to consider confounding effects of children's developmental status and motivation and to distinguish them from specific need-of-help recognition abilities. As gender and age have been shown to influence social perception as well as helping behavior, we explored whether these factors also have an impact on need-of-help recognition. Children's response accuracies and response times (RTs) were analyzed. We observed clearly higher accuracy rates for younger girls compared to younger boys specifically in the need-of-help recognition tasks. For boys, an age-related performance improvement was found. Younger girls performed at a similarly high level as older girls and boys. No gender differences were observed for children aged over nine. This report provides first evidence that the developmental trajectory of children's ability to recognize another person's need-of-help differs for girls and boys.

Некоторые аспекты физического развития и психологического статуса школьников

Некоторые аспекты физического развития и психологического статуса школьников

An examination of Anglo and Latino parenting practices: Relation to behavior problems in children with or without developmental delay

The transactional model of development has received empirical support in research on at-risk children. However, little is known about the role of ethnicity or child delay status (i.e., developmental delay [DD] or typical cognitive development [TD]) in the process of parents adapting to their child's behavior problems and special needs. We examined whether Latina (N=44) and Anglo (N=147) mothers of 3-year-old children with or without DD differed in their use of two parenting practices, maternal scaffolding and sensitivity. We also examined how the status and ethnic groups differed in child behavior problems at ages 3 and 5 and whether parenting predicted change in behavior problems over time in the ethnic and status groups. Analyses generally supported previous research on status group differences in behavior problems (DD higher) and parenting practices (TD higher). Parenting practices predicted a decrease in externalizing problems from child age 3 to 5 years among Latino families only. Child developmental status was not associated with change in behavior problems. Cultural perspectives on the transactional model of development and implications for intervention are discussed.

Integrating nutrition and early child-development interventions among infants and preschoolers in rural India.

This article describes the development, design, and implementation of an integrated randomized double-masked placebo-controlled trial (Project Grow Smart) that examines how home/preschool fortification with multiple micronutrient powder (MNP) combined with an early child-development intervention affects child development, growth, and micronutrient status among infants and preschoolers in rural India. The 1-year trial has an infant phase (enrollment age: 6-12 months) and a preschool phase (enrollment age: 36-48 months). Infants are individually randomized into one of four groups: placebo, placebo plus early learning, MNP alone, and MNP plus early learning (integrated intervention), conducted through home visits. The preschool phase is a cluster-randomized trial conducted in Anganwadi centers (AWCs), government-run preschools sponsored by the Integrated Child Development System of India. AWCs are randomized into MNP or placebo, with the MNP or placebo mixed into the children's food. The evaluation examines whether the effects of the MNP intervention vary by the quality of the early learning opportunities and communication within the AWCs. Study outcomes include child development, growth, and micronutrient status. Lessons learned during the development, design, and implementation of the integrated trial can be used to guide large-scale policy and programs designed to promote the developmental, educational, and economic potential of children in developing countries.

Effects of integrated child development and nutrition interventions on child development and nutritional status.

We conducted a systematic review of studies that examined the effect of interventions combining a child development component with a nutrition one; in some cases the nutrition interventions also included health-promotion components. Only papers with both child development and nutrition outcomes and rated as moderate-to-good quality were included. Eleven efficacy and two nonrandomized trials, and eight program evaluations were identified. Only six trials examined interventions separately and combined. The trials showed nutritional interventions usually benefited nutritional status and sometimes benefited child development. Stimulation consistently benefited child development. There was no significant loss of any effect when interventions were combined, but there was little evidence of synergistic interaction between nutrition and stimulation on child development. Only three trials followed up the children after intervention. All at-scale program evaluations were combined interventions. Five benefited child development, but one did not, and two showed deficits. There was generally little benefit of at-scale programs to nutritional status. We found no rigorous evaluations of adding stimulation to health and nutrition services at scale and there is an urgent need for them. There is also a need to establish quality-control mechanisms for existing scaled-up programs and to determine their long-term effects. There is also a need to determine if there are any sustained benefits for the children after programs finish.

English

OBJECTIVE: The skeletal maturity of any individual is known as bone age and it can be reliably estimated by a roentgenologic study of osseous development since the appearance and union of the centers of ossification occur in a fairly definite pattern and time sequence from birth to maturity. This is particularly helpful in the clinical workup of children with endocrinological disorders where skeletal and pubertal growth is affected. Therefore the bone age can be advanced, delayed or appropriate for chronological age in various endocrinological disorders. We present cases which affect skeletal maturation in a way that a simple investigation like the bone age estimation can lead to their diagnosis or can help therapeutic interventions. The present study aims to reiterate the importance of bone age in the diagnosis and management of endocrinological disorders. MATERIAL AND METHODS: X rays of both hands of cases and for bone age estimation we used the Greulich - Pyle atlas to accord a bone age to each bone of the hand and obtain an average reading. RESULT: The endocrinological disorders were classified as advanced, delayed and bone age appropriate for chronological age. Cases with advanced bone age were a child with hypothalamic hamartoma and a child with congenital adrenal hyperplasia. Those with delayed bone age were hypothyroidism and growth hormone deficiency. The case with bone age appropriate for chronological age was that of a Turner girl. In each of these cases the bone age helped in the diagnosis and also in the therapeutic decisions. CONCLUSIONS: Assessing bone age through radiographs of both hands graded according to Greulich Pyle method provided the endocrinologists an inexpensive tool to obtain an objective measure of the child's developmental status and also an effective tool for the diagnosis and differential diagnosis of various endocrinological disorders. It also guides the endocrinologist of the timing and effectiveness of the therapeutic measures employed.

The Impact on Child Developmental Status at 12 Months of Volunteer Home-Visiting Support

Home-visiting support during pregnancy or soon after the birth of an infant can be advantageous for maternal well-being and infant development. The best results have been identified when home visitors are professionals, especially nurses, and if a theoretically driven curriculum is followed with fidelity. Some suggest that disadvantaged families, who may avoid professional services, respond well to support from community volunteers, but there is less evidence about their impact. This study identified potentially vulnerable mothers during pregnancy in randomly allocated neighbourhoods where local volunteer home-visiting schemes agreed to offer proactive volunteer support and control areas where the local home-visiting schemes did not offer this proactive service. Taking demographic, child, and family factors into account, there were no significant differences in infant cognitive development at 12 months of age between families who had been supported by a volunteer and those who had not. Better cognitive development was predicted by less reported parenting stress when infants were 2 months and a more stimulating and responsive home environment at 12 months. The results suggest that unstructured proactive volunteer support for potentially vulnerable families is not likely to enhance infant development. Limitations of the cluster-randomised design are discussed.

415 Parents’ Evaluation of Developmental Status (PEDS:DM) and the Parenting Relationship in Children Born very Preterm

Background/aimDifferences in parenting children born very-preterm (VPT < 29 weeks gestation) with and without developmental delay has not been fully described. This study examines the association between parent-reported child developmental...

Facilitating HIV testing, care and treatment for orphans and vulnerable children aged five years and younger through community‐based early childhood development playcentres in rural Zimbabwe

IntroductionEarly diagnosis of children living with HIV is a prerequisite for accessing timely paediatric HIV care and treatment services and for optimizing treatment outcomes. Testing of HIV-exposed infants at 6 weeks and later is part of the national prevention of mother to child transmission (PMTCT) of HIV programme in Zimbabwe, but many opportunities to test infants and children are being missed. Early childhood development (ECD) playcentres can act as an entry point providing multiple health and social services for orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) under 5 years, including facilitating access to HIV treatment and care.MethodsSixteen rural community-based, community-run ECD playcentres were established to provide health, nutritional and psychosocial support for OVC aged 5 years and younger exposed to or living with HIV, coupled with family support groups (FSGs) for their families/caregivers. These centres were located in close proximity to health centres giving access to nurse-led monitoring of 697 OVC and their caregivers. Community mobilisers identified OVC within the community, supported their registration process and followed up defaulters. Records profiling each child's attendance, development and health status (including illness episodes), vaccinations and HIV status were compiled at the playcentres and regularly reviewed, updated and acted upon by nurse supervisors. Through FSGs, community cadres and a range of officers from local services established linkages and built the capacity of parents/caregivers and communities to provide protection, aid psychosocial development and facilitate referral for treatment and support.ResultsAvailable data as of September 2011 for 16 rural centres indicate that 58.8% (n=410) of the 697 children attending the centres were tested for HIV; 18% (n=74) tested positive and were initiated on antibiotic prophylaxis. All those deemed eligible for antiretroviral therapy were commenced on treatment and adherence was monitored.ConclusionsThis community-based playcentre model strengthens comprehensive care (improving emotional, cognitive and physical development) for OVC younger than 5 years and provides opportunities for caregivers to access testing, care and treatment for children exposed to, affected by and infected with HIV in a secure and supportive environment. More research is required to evaluate barriers to counselling and testing of young children and the long-term impact of playcentres upon specific health and developmental outcomes.

Altered social cohesion and adverse psychological experiences with chronic food insecurity in the non-market economy and complex households of Burkina Faso

Food insecurity negatively impacts outcomes in adults and children including parenting practices, child development, educational achievement, school performance, diet, and nutritional status. Ethnographic and quantitative research suggests that food insecurity affects well-being not only through the lack food, poor diet, and hunger, but also through social and psychological consequences that are closely linked to it. These studies are limited in number, and have mostly been carried out in contexts with market economies where household access to food depends almost solely on income. This study considers the social and psychological experiences closely linked to food insecurity in northern Burkina Faso, a context marked by subsistence farming, chronic food insecurity with a strong seasonal pattern, and a complex social structure. A total of 33 men and women from ten households were interviewed in February 2001 using semi-structured interview guides. Data were analyzed following the principles of thematic analysis. Food insecurity is closely linked with consequences such as concern, worries, and anxiety that ultimately lead to weight and sleep loss. Food insecurity results in feelings of alienation (e.g., shame) and deprivation (e.g., guilt), and alters household cohesion leading to disputes and difficulties keeping children at home. Decisions made by household members to manage and cope with food insecurity are shaped by their fear of alienation and other cultural and social norms. These findings, although derived from data collected 10 years ago before the 2008 food and fuel crises, remain valid in the study context, and emphasize the importance of social and psychological consequences closely linked to food insecurity and their negative impact on the well-being at both individual and household levels in contexts of non-market economy and chronic food insecurity. Attention to these non-nutritional consequences will improve the design, implementation, and evaluation of food insecurity programs in this and similar contexts.

Developmental status and home environment among children born to immigrant women married to Taiwanese men

The aims of this cross-sectional study were to examine (a) the developmental status and home environments of children (6-24 months) of immigrant women married to Taiwanese men, and (b) the association of child developmental status with parental socio-demographics, maternal language abilities, and home environment qualities. Participants were 61 children and their mothers from China and Vietnam. Data were collected with interviews, home observations, and developmental testing. The children had lower cognitive and language but higher motor and social development scores compared with native norms. Home environment and maternal perceived language ability were positively associated with child development. The association of home environment and maternal language ability with early childhood development was supported for immigrant populations in Taiwan.

The ecological validity of the Rey–Osterrieth Complex Figure: Predicting everyday problems in children with neuropsychological disorders

Despite its extensive use, the validity of the Rey Complex Figure in predicting everyday behavioral executive dysfunction displayed by children with various neuropsychological disorders is unknown. The copied figures of 263 children aged 6 to 17 years were rescored using an accuracy approach that measured visuospatial ability and three process approaches developed to measure executive functioning. Controlling for age and IQ, partial correlations between scores derived by all scoring methods and the parent ratings on an executive function inventory were zero. In contrast, all four scoring approaches were associated with parent ratings on questionnaires that indexed children's academic achievement, developmental status, and adaptive ability. The findings suggest that the ecological validity of the Rey Complex Figure for children with various central nervous system disorders is more associated with visual-motor integration skills than executive functioning.