Developmental

Delay/Disability

Papeleras, Cherry Pearl Eve P.

Discussant
 What is Developmental
Delay/Disability?
• is when your child does not reach
their developmental milestones at the expected
times.
• Delay can occur in one or many areas—for
example, physical in nature, cognitive or it
might be learning based.
• Developmental Disability/Delay (DD) is
present when functional aspects of a
child’s development in one or more
domains (gross/fine motor, speech/language,
cognition, social/personal, and activities of
daily living) are significantly delayed
compared to the expected level for age
 Global Developmental Delay
(GDD)
- is a subset of DD defined as significant delay
in two or more developmental domains
(reserved for children less than 5 years old)
- Is the general term used to describe a
condition that occurs during the developmental
period of a child between birth and 18 years.
 Global Developmental Delay
(GDD)
- It is usually defined by the child being
diagnosed with having a lower intellectual
functioning than what is perceive as normal.
• An estimated 12-16% of children have a
developmental and/or behavior disorder.
• Pediatricians are the primary professional
with whom families have contact during a
child’s first five years of life
• Early identification by primary care providers
of developmental delays leads to early
referral for evaluation and treatment.
• The Individuals With Disabilities Education Act
(IDEA) Amendments of 1997 mandates early
identification and intervention for developmental
disabilities and requires clinicians to refer children with
suspected developmental delays to the appropriate early
intervention system in a timely manner

• An established diagnosis of development disability is

not necessary for referral to early intervention programs
 Possible Causes of
Developmental Delay/Disability
• Environmental in • Genetics in Nature
Nature 1. Muscular Dystrophies
2. Down Syndrome (Down’s
1. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Syndrome)
2. Maternal Infections 3. Tuberous Sclerosis
during pregnancy 4. Mental Retardation
5. Cerebral Palsy
 Effects of DD

1. Child’s Physical milestone (walking)

2. Child’s learning
 Signs child is developmentally delayed
• Not walking and talking
• Not engage to their parents (child wouldn’t look
at you and not being responsive)
• Don’t want to interact with their peers
• Clumsy
• Hard time in holding crayons or pencil
 Developmental intervention
• Children 0-36 months—agencies (usually state
run, i.e. Early Steps) determine if children with
suspected/diagnosed DD qualify for services
– Multidisciplinary
– Speech and Language Pathologist
– Occupational and Physical Therapy
– Social Worker
– Psychological evaluation if needed
– Children 3-5 years—preschool special education
services are available (i.e. Headstart)
• Continued services—may be in or out of classroom
– Children older than 5 years—referrals usually made
through public school system
– Private evaluations/services are also available
 Parents need to do:
• Be observant
• List all the things that you’ve observe
• Go to your pediatrician for some consultation
 - The End -
Thank you
For
Listening 
And Godbless 