Prevalence and characteristics of children with mild intellectual disability in a French county.
In one French county, a large share of young learners have mild ID, most have language disorders, and genetic testing is rare.
01Research in Context
What this study did
A French team counted every young learners with mild intellectual disability in one county. They screened 5,000 sixth-graders and gave full tests to those who scored low. Doctors also checked school files and spoke with teachers.
What they found
Eighteen out of every the children had mild ID. That is a large share of the county’s kids. More than half also had serious language problems. Fewer than 1 in 10 had ever seen a geneticist.
How this fits with other research
Vink et al. (2019) in Ireland found census forms can double-count people with ID. Registers give truer numbers for service planning. The French number is close to Irish register data, so the a large share figure is likely solid.
Hong et al. (2021) showed chromosomal microarray finds a cause in a large share of non-syndromic ID cases. Yet M et al. found Nikolov et al. (2009) showed a large share of typical peers enjoy hanging out with kids with mild ID at summer camp. The same age group M et al. counted can thrive in inclusive settings when given the chance.
Why it matters
You now have a firm county-level baseline: nearly 2 in every the students. Most have extra language needs and almost none have genetic answers. Push for speech services early and bring up microarray testing at the next clinic visit.
Want CEUs on This Topic?
The ABA Clubhouse has 60+ free CEUs — live every Wednesday. Ethics, supervision & clinical topics.
Join Free →Add a line in your next assessment: ‘Refer for chromosomal microarray if not yet done.’
02At a glance
03Original abstract
BACKGROUND: Studies conducted on mild intellectual disability (MID) in children are infrequent and the prevalence rates vary widely. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of MID in children in a French county (Isère), to describe the clinical signs and associated comorbidities, and to specify the aetiologies of this disability. METHODS: The target population was comprised of the 15 100 children born in 1997 residing in Isère County, France, in 2008. Our goal was to find the children in this group with MID diagnosed between 9 and 13 years of age. MID was defined as an overall IQ score of between 50 and 69 [International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems 10th Revision (ICD-10)]; this definition was adjusted for the study by integrating confidence intervals so that the risk of IQ measurement relativity and possible discrepancy of scores could be taken into account. Children were identified through an administrative data source designed to assist disabled persons that contains health information, and an educational data source. Parents who agreed to let their children participate responded to an in-depth questionnaire on their child's medical and academic history. A genetic investigation was proposed for those children whose MID had an unknown aetiology. RESULTS: The preliminary selection included 267 children, resulting in a prevalence rate of 18 per 1000 (CI [15.6; 19.9]), within the expected mean. Of these 267 cases, 181 families agreed to participate in the study (68%). MID more often affected boys [male gender ratio = 1.4 (CI [1.2; 1.6])], low socioeconomic groups, and families with a history of intellectual disability. The clinical signs and comorbidities associated with MID were very frequent, with 54% spoken language disorders and 10% pervasive developmental disorder. Only 9% of the children had undergone a genetic investigation before the study. The known aetiology rate for MID was 19% among all the children who had had genetic tests performed. CONCLUSION: MID is an important public health issue based on its prevalence. The associated clinical signs and comorbidities may be warning signs of MID in case of learning difficulties. This study may help decision-makers to develop and organise screening and care for MID.
Journal of intellectual disability research : JIDR, 2014 · doi:10.1111/jir.12057