Intellectual Disability Among Disabled Children: Prevalence and Risk Factors in a Rural Area of Jammu, India

• Main Authors: Preeti Kumari (Author), Bhavna Langer (Author), Shabnum Rivees (Author), Rajiv K Gupta (Author), Richa Mahajan (Author), Rashmi Kumari (Author)
• Format: Book
• Published: Dr. Annil Mahajan, 2024-04-01T00:00:00Z.
• Subjects: article
• Online Access: Connect to this object online.
• Notes: 0972-1177
• Keywords: Intellectual Disability; Prevalence; Rural area; India; Intelligence Quotient; Medicine (General); R5-920; Internal medicine; RC31-1245
• Source: JK Science, Vol 26, Iss 2 (2024)

Background: Disabled Children suffer Intellectual Disability/ies (ID) to a varying extent. Role of environmental and non-genetic factors in Intellectual Disability remains largely unexplored in developing nations. The study aimed to determine Intellectual Disability among disabled rural children and its association of various demographic variables. Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted in a randomly selected rural health zone. 52 children of ages 1 18 years with various disabilities were assessed for IQ by a clinical psychologist using Developmental Screening Test, Sequin Form Board test, CM Bhatia test and Vineland Social Maturity Scale. Chi-square test was used to find associations, if any. Results: 16 children out of 52 were suffering from Intellectual Disability thus resulting in a prevalence of 30.7%. Male: Female ratio for Intellectual Disability was 1.3:1. Among the demographic variables, sex of the child and maternal age at child birth were significantly associated with Intellectual Disability (p<0.05). Conclusions: High prevalence of Intellectual Disability among disabled children is a cause of concern. Healthcare team needs to raise awareness among females of reproductive age about various risk factors and screen children with disabilities for Intelligence Quotient (IQ) for early interventions.