Premium
THE IMPORTANCE OF THE “SMALL‐FOR‐DATES” BABY TO THE PROBLEM OF MENTAL RETARDATION
Author(s) -
Collins Edith,
Turner Gillian
Publication year - 1971
Publication title -
medical journal of australia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.904
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1326-5377
pISSN - 0025-729X
DOI - 10.5694/j.1326-5377.1971.tb50566.x
Subject(s) - mentally retarded , growth retardation , incidence (geometry) , pediatrics , population , medicine , obstetrics , pregnancy , psychology , biology , developmental psychology , environmental health , genetics , physics , optics
A survey of the birth weights of 1,345 mentally retarded individuals showed that 14×4% had a reduced rate of fœtal growth (“small for dates”), whereas the incidence of prematurity alone was only marginally higher than that found in the normal population. One‐third of the 14·4% have associated congenital anomalies, or their retardation is secondary to viral infection. The remaining two‐thirds or 10% of the total surveyed may be retarded because of the effects of placental insufficiency. In the prevention of mental retardation, the importance of antenatal and postnatal recognition of the small‐for‐dates baby is stressed.