title: Practitioner review: physical investigations in mental retardation.
abstract: Mental retardation occurs in more than 1% of the child population. A cause can be found in almost 80% of individuals with severe mental retardation, but in fewer than 40% of those with mild mental retardation. A work-up is indicated in all cases of mental retardation. A medical doctor with specific training in the field is needed to make "decision-tree diagnosis" and to suggest the most appropriate physical investigations in each case. This paper provides practical guidelines for diagnosis and work-up both in severe and mild mental retardation.
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, Göteborg University, Annedals Clinics, Sweden.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gillberg
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D015897:Comorbidity; D003663:Decision Trees; D005260:Female; D005817:Genetic Counseling; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008607:Intellectual Disability / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology; D007361:Intelligence Tests; D008297:Male; D008487:Medical History Taking; D009460:Neurologic Examination; D010641:Phenotype; D010808:Physical Examination; D015995:Prevalence; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D017678:Sex Distribution; D009626:Terminology as Topic