Main Causes of Mental Retardation:
- Congenital infections
- Exposure of the fetus to harmful substances
- Complication during pregnancy or labor
- Malnutrition in the fetus or infant
- Illness or injury during childhood
- Genetic factors causing chromosomal, metabolic, or neurological disorders.
What causes mental retardation in the womb?
Maternal infections in the womb, like toxoplasmosis, glandular disorder, CMV can also cause mental retardation. If the mother happens to have some Coronary Heart Disease, where her blood pressure remains perpetually high, the oxygen supply to the fetus may be diverted.
How does mental retardation happen?
Mental retardation (intellectual disabilities) happen because the brain gets injured or a problem prevents the brain from developing normally. These problems can happen while the baby is growing inside his or her mom, during the baby’s birth, or after the baby is born. Many times, though, doctors don’t know the cause.
What diseases can cause mental retardation?
Cough, chickenpox, measles, Hib disease may cause mental retardation if not treated on time and adequately. An infection of the brain’s layers (meningitis) or brain fever that causes swelling in the brain (Encephalitis) can cause mental retardation and irreversible brain damage.
Can a child inherit mental retardation?
If one or both parents have mental retardation, there is a much greater chance that their children will also have this condition. Other inherited disorders include as phenylketonuria (PKU) or Tay-Sachs disease. PKU is a birth defect that causes an amino acid called phenylalanine to build up in the body.
What is the leading cause of mental retardation in newborns?
Lancet.
What are the prenatal causes of intellectual disability?
Some of the most common known causes of intellectual disability – like Down syndrome, fetal alcohol syndrome, fragile X syndrome, genetic conditions, birth defects, and infections – happen before birth.
What are 3 factors that may cause mental retardation?
Specifically, potential causes include, but are not restricted to, chromosomal deficits (Down syndrome), inherited disorders (Fragile X syndrome, hypothyroidism), errors of metabolism, brain injury or infection (insufficient oxygen during birth, meningitis), prematurity or low birth weight, fetal malnutrition, drug or ...
Can you tell if a baby has mental retardation in the womb?
Certain tests, such as ultrasound and amniocentesis, can also be performed during pregnancy to look for problems associated with intellectual disability. Although these tests may identify problems before birth, they cannot correct them.
How are mental retardation detected after birth?
Newborn Screening is a simple blood test to find out if your baby has a congenital disorder that can lead to mental retardation or even death if left untreated.
Can we prevent mental retardation?
Health and family planning, recognition of "at risk" situations, genetic counseling, prenatal care, antenatal diagnosis, neonatal screening and pediatric care are just a few of the preventive actions to safe-guard the birth of normal children and secure normal mental development.
Who is at risk of mental retardation?
Overview. Risk factors for mental retardation include genetic syndromes, hypoxic ischemic injury, and seizure disorders among others.
Is mental retardation hereditary?
Mental retardation is caused by a number of different factors. Among genetic disorders, Fragile X syndrome and Down syndrome are the commonest causes of mental retardation. Fragile X syndrome (FXS) is an inherited form of mental retardation. FXS is estimated to affect 1 in 2,500 males and 1 in 8,000 females.
What causes learning disabilities in perinatal circumstances?
This can be caused by things such as: the mother becoming ill in pregnancy. problems during the birth that stop enough oxygen getting to the brain. the unborn baby having some genes passed on from its parents that make having a learning disability more likely.
How does prenatal development affect child development?
Finally, prenatal development has a significant impact on the auditory and visual sensory functions of the baby in the womb, and birth weight was found to be positively associated with hearing and visual functions (Olsen et al., 2001). The prenatal period is also important for the emotional development of babies.
What factors can affect prenatal growth?
Genetic, nutritional, environmental, uteroplacental, and fetal factors have been suggested to influence fetal growth. Uteroplacental and umbilical blood flow and transplacental glucose and fetal insulin are major determinants of fetal growth.
What are 3 environmental factors that affect prenatal development?
Similarly air pollution, pesticide exposure, stress have also been associated with low birth weight and preterm delivery. This review gives an overview of the importance of environmental factors in adverse pregnancy outcome.
How does mental retardation affect the brain?
The brain of those who suffer from the condition of mental retardation grows and develops slower than their peers. The maturity in the behavior of these individuals arrives late and generally, they find it hard to fit in with other people. They develop milestone motor skills like walking and crawling at a time much late than the other children. Mental retardation or intellectual disability varies with its severity. It is classified into four categories based on the severity as given below.
How can a person with mental retardation live a happy life?
For these goals to materialize they require some emotional support system and psychiatric aid to train them for daily living skills. However, things look grim who lie on the severe and profound mental retardation. They require caregivers for the rest of their lives and are mostly dependent on others. With this we have successfully completed the causes and stages of the mental retardation condition, in the next post, we will discuss the treatment and management of such individuals. Thank you for reading, we’ll see you next time.
What are the prenatal issues?
What prenatal issues imply is the issues that might develop during the pregnancy and might cause some damage to the developing fetus. If the mother is a heavy drinker or an alcoholic, Foetal Alcohol Syndrome develops. It is noticed in one of the 3,000 children in western nations. Even moderate alcohol intake can affect the fetus negatively. Drug abuse, cigarette smoking is also linked to mental retardation. Maternal infections in the womb, like toxoplasmosis, glandular disorder, CMV can also cause mental retardation. If the mother happens to have some Coronary Heart Disease, where her blood pressure remains perpetually high, the oxygen supply to the fetus may be diverted. This can also damage the brain of the fetus.
What is the IQ of mentally retarded people?
Almost 2/3rds of the mentally retarded patients lie in this category. They have their IQ scores in the range of 55-70. They can be educated till grades 6-7 th and can lead a fulfilling self-dependent life.
What percentage of people are mentally retarded?
About 2-3% of the mentally retarded population is classified as profoundly retarded. Their IQ scores are under 20-25. They can develop functional vocabulary and work on with daily life activities with some assistance from their caregivers. They do, however, require some supervision from their caregivers at all times.
Why do children have ID?
Those children who face abuse, ignorance at their parent’s hands, and are not provided with enough mental and physical stimulation might develop issues like ID. Those who have abusive families or live in poverty, unhealthy lifestyle, face abuse, get improper medical care are at higher risk. Exposure to toxic metals and chemicals can also cause mental retardation.
What is the birth defect of a fetus?
One such case is the Neural tube defect. It is a birth defect that is caused by an incompletely developed neural tube that does not seal off the spinal cord completely from the body fluids. This may lead to the accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid inside the skull (also known as hydrocephalus). This can cause impairment of the brain by putting a considerable amount of hydrostatic pressure on it.
What is the genetic cause of mental retardation?
Down syndrome is basically a condition where a person has 47 chromosomes, as opposed to the 46 chromosomes that a person should normally have. This extra chromosome interferes with the functioning of the brain, thus often leading to retardation.
What are the factors that contribute to mental retardation?
Environmental Conditions & Exposure to Toxins. The next highly contributing factor leading to mental retardation are those of environmental conditions, as well as exposure to toxins. Environment in a case like such is generally in reference to poverty and cultural deprivation. Poverty is known to be a large cause of it, ...
What are the different types of mental retardation?
A mental condition which is categorized into four types, i.e., mild, moderate, severe and profound, the IQ of a person is the determining factor to find out where his mental abilities / capacities stand.
What percentage of the population suffers from mental retardation?
Read further to learn more on the same…. Studies and statistics say that 1 to 3 percent of the population suffers from mental retardation, otherwise referred to as Intellectual Disability. A medical condition that occurs and should be identified before adulthood, mental retardation is a condition wherein the mental senses have restrictions, ...
Why is poverty a problem?
Poverty is known to be a large cause of it, mainly because the impoverished conditions can lead to exposure to environmental conditions that are unsuitable for mental growth. This idea also refers to the lack of mental stimulus, thus stunting mental growth. Exposure to toxins is an equal culprit leading to it too.
Is mental retardation a medical problem?
Sometimes referred to as intellectual disability, mental retardation has always been one of biggest causes of concern in terms of medical concerns. A tough situation for most people to deal with, there is a constant research going on about its causes. Read further to learn more on the same...
Is famine a mental illness?
It is not so surprising though, given the rapid change in food trends and habits of most people these days. With a mounting consumption of fast food / junk food, nutritional deficiencies are on the rise like never before. Apart from the above mentioned, famine is also one of the largest causes of this mental condition.
What is mental retardation?
Mental retardation also called intellectual disability is a condition in which a person has below average intelligence which limits their ability to function normally. People with intellectual disabilities can and usually learn new skills, but they learn them more slowly. Mental retardation which is more common in boys than girls, begins at birth or in childhood.
What are the other disorders that can be inherited from parents?
Other inherited disorders include as phenylketonuria (PKU) or Tay-Sachs disease.
What is the chromosomal defect of Martin Bell syndrome?
Another fairly common chromosomal defect is fragile X also termed Martin-Bell syndrome or marker X syndrome. Fragile X syndrome causes mild to severe intellectual disability and is more common in boys than girls. Children with Fragile X often have learning, behavioural and developmental problems. They can find it hard to understand or process information.
How many levels of mental retardation are there?
There are four levels of mental retardation: mild, moderate, severe, and profound. These levels are determined by performance on standardized IQ tests and by the potential to learn adaptive skills such as communication and social interaction.
What happens if you drink too much alcohol while pregnant?
If you are pregnant and drink too much alcohol, your risk of having a mentally retarded child through a condition known as fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) increases.
Can radiation cause mental retardation?
Maternal malnutrition and exposure to radiation during pregnancy can also cause mental retardation.
What is mental retardation?
Mental retardation is now called “intellectual disability” sometimes also called cognitive disabilities. According to American Association of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities ( https://aaidd.org/home ), intellectual disability is defined as “a disability characterized by significant limitations in both intellectual functioning and in adaptive behavior, which covers many everyday social and practical skills. This disability originates before the age of 18” 1). Intellectual disability is defined as a below-average intelligence (IQ) or mental ability coupled with lack of basic skills necessary for daily living, daily interaction (communication & social skills) and activities that is diagnosed before age 18. These limitations will cause a child to learn and develop more slowly than a typical child. Just like other health problems, an intellectual disability can be mild (smaller) or major (bigger). The bigger the disability, the more trouble someone will have learning and becoming an independent person. There are varying degrees of intellectual disability are identified according to their level of intelligence quotient (IQ). In the past, the term mental retardation was used to describe intellectual disability, but now mental retardation is no longer used because it hurts people’s feelings.
Why is mental retardation no longer used?
In the past, the term mental retardation was used to describe intellectual disability, but now mental retardation is no longer used because it hurts people’s feelings. An intellectual disability is not a disease. You can’t catch an intellectual disability from anyone.
What causes intellectual disability in children?
Still other causes of intellectual disability do not occur until a child is older; these might include serious head injury, stroke, or certain infections. There are many causes of intellectual disability, but doctors find a specific reason in only 25% of cases 10). Risk factors are related to the causes.
When does intellectual disability start?
Mental retardation (intellectual disability) begins in the first two decades of life. The age and characteristics of onset depend on the cause of the disability and the severity of the neuropsychiatric dysfunction. The identification of children with more severe mental retardation (what previously would have been termed severe and profound mental retardation) typically occurs early in life. These children often have dysmorphic features and associated medical conditions and higher rates of behavioral and psychiatric disturbances. Individuals with severe intellectual disability may show delayed motor, language, and social accomplishments within the first 2 years of life. Individuals with mild intellectual disability may not be recognized until early school age because that is when their difficulties with academic learning become apparent.
Is intellectual disability a complex issue?
No. The evaluation and classification intellectual disability is a complex issue. There are three major criteria for intellectual disability: significant limitations in intellectual functioning, significant limitations in adaptive behavior, and onset before the age of 18.
Do children with intellectual disabilities need help?
During school, a child with an intellectual disability will probably need help. Some children have helpers that stay with them during the school day. They may be in special classes or get other services to help them learn and develop.
Can alcohol cause intellectual disability?
Problems during pregnancy. An intellectual disability can result when the baby does not develop inside the mother properly. Sometimes, the mom might get an illness or infection that can harm the baby. Taking certain medicines while pregnant can cause problems for the baby. Drinking alcohol or taking illegal drugs also can damage a baby’s developing brain. For example, there may be a problem with the way the baby’s cells divide as it grows. A woman who drinks alcohol or gets an infection like rubella during pregnancy may also have a baby with an intellectual disability.
1. Chromosomal Aberrations
Chromosomal aberrations include Chromosomal disorders like Down’s Syndrome (most common) and Fragile X Syndrome; inborn errors of metabolism like Phenylketonuria and Tay-Sachs Disease.
3. After-birth causes of Mental Retardation
The after birth causes of Mental Retardation include severe metabolic disorders, infections like Tuberculosis, Bacterial Meningitis, Japanese Encephalitis and Whooping Cough; prolonged high fever, drowning, lead poisoning and severe malnutrition.
Possible Causes
- In most cases, the cause of mental retardation is unknown, but several conditions during pregnancy can cause or contribute to the child's mental retardation, such as the use of certain drugs, excessive alcohol consumption, radiation therapy and poor nutrition. Difficulties associated with premature birth, traumatic brain injury or very low oxygen c...
How to Identify Mental Retardation
- The degrees of mental retardation that can be observed through the intelligence quotient test (IQ). Children with an IQ of 69 to 84 have a learning disability, but are not considered to be mentally retarded, but those with a mild mental retardation, who have an IQ of 52 to 68, although have a reading disability, can learn the basic educational skills needed day to day.
Main Characteristics of Mental Retardation
- Mental retardation can be classified as: It is characterized by an intellectual quotient (IQ) between 52 to 68. Children with a mild degree of mental retardation can achieve a reading level similar to that of children between the 4th and 6th grades, learning the basic educational skills needed in their daily lives. These people generally do not have obvious physical defects, but they may hav…
Life Expectancy
- The life expectancy of children with mental retardation may be shorter and it appears that the more severe the mental retardation, the lower the life expectancy.