Research in developmental disabilities
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Although the attention for functional outcomes after burn injury has grown over the past decades, little is known about functional independence in performing activities of daily living in children after burn injury. Therefore, in this prospective cohort study functional independence was measured by burn care professionals with the WeeFIM(®) instrument in 119 pediatric patients with burns (age: 6 months-16 years; 58.8% boys) in the Netherlands. In order to identify whether functional independence was affected, participants' total scores on the WeeFIM(®) instrument were compared to American norm values. ⋯ This study is unique in providing data on functional independence for this large and special population. However, a proportion of participants were lost to follow-up and the use of the WeeFIM(®) instrument in this specific population and setting has its limitations. To conclude, burn injury impacts functional independence in children, yet the vast majority of Dutch pediatric patients with burns returns to functional independence typical for age within 6 months post burn.
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Multimorbidity (2 or more chronic conditions) is being widely studied in older populations and this study explores both the relevance of emerging conceptualizations and the extent to which multimorbidity is a feature of aging in persons with an intellectual disability. ⋯ Further investigation, attention to mental health issues and the development of treatment guidelines that recognize chronic condition disease load are critical to mitigating the negative impact of multiple chronic conditions and preventing additional disability in adults with ID as they age.
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This study examined the associations between children's and adolescents' autistic-like social deficits and school and social adjustment as well as the moderating roles of age and gender in these associations. The sample consisted of 1321 students (48.7% boys) in Grade 1 to Grade 8 from northern Taiwan. Children's and adolescents' autistic-like social deficits were assessed using the Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS), and their school and social adjustment (i.e., academic performance, negative attitudes toward schoolwork/teachers/classmates, behavioral problems at schools, negative peer relationships, and problems with peers) were assessed using the Social Adjustment Inventory for Children and Adolescents (SAICA). ⋯ For example, autistic-like social deficits were more strongly related to negative school attitude, school social problems, and negative peer relationships in boys than in girls. Further, autistic-like social deficits were more strongly related to problems with peers in older girls than in older boys or younger children (regardless of gender). In conclusion, the present study suggests that autistic-like social deficits may place children and adolescents at increased risk for social and school maladjustment and that the extent of maladjustment may vary with the child's age and gender and the domains of adjustment under discussion.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
A model for pain behavior in individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
The dearth of information on the pain experience of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) calls for a more comprehensive understanding of pain in this population. The Non-Communicating Adults Pain Checklist (NCAPC) is an 18-item behavioral scale that was recently found to be reliable, valid, sensitive and clinically feasible to assess pain levels in adults with IDD. The aim of the present article is to propose and examine a pain model for adults with IDD. ⋯ The constructed model seems to reflect two categories of pain responses: a basic response consisting of physiological measures and body reaction, and an advanced response consisting of vocal and emotional reactions, as well as facial and protective expressions. The model presented excellent Goodness of Fit Index (0.99) and an acceptable RMSEA value (0.061). We conclude that the current article presents a first-of-its-kind model of pain behavior in adults with IDD.
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The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationships of muscle strength at different angular velocities and gross motor functions in ambulatory children with cerebral palsy (CP). This study included 33 ambulatory children with spastic CP aged 6-15 years and 15 children with normal development. Children with CP were categorized into level I (n=17) or level II (n=16) according to Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS) levels. ⋯ The knee flexor strength at different angular velocities was associated with various gross motor tasks. The HQ ratio may be used as a potential biomarker to probe the therapeutic effectiveness for muscle strengthening in these children. These data may allow clinician for formulating effective muscle strengthening strategies for these children.