Neurodevelopmental

Disorders

Prepared by: Justine Marie Beltran

 Developmental psychopathology
 Study of how disorders arise and change with time

 Neurodevelopmental Disorders
 A group of disorders that typically arise first in
childhood

Prepared by: Justine Marie Beltran

Why is the study of
developmental disorders
important?
 Any disruption in the acquisition of early skills will, by
the very nature of the developmental process, also
disrupt the development of later skills

Prepared by: Justine Marie Beltran

Neurodevelopmental
Disorders

Category includes:
 Intellectual Disability
 Autism Spectrum Disorder
 ADHD
 Communication Disorders
 Specific Learning Disorder
 Motor Disorders

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 Attention Deficit
Hyperactivity Disorder

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 Present
 before age 12
 In more than one setting
 Interfere with and or reduce the quality of social,
academic or occupational functioning

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 Etiology

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* Brain Structures *Deficiencies in
& Brain chemicals Diet

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 Treatment

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 AUTISM SPECTRUM
DISORDER

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DSM-IV-TR

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Autism Spectrum Disorder

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Treatment of ASD

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 Intellectual Disability
 significant subaverage intellectual functioning

 deficits in the ability to function in conceptual,

social, and practical domains

 Occurs before age 18 (during developmental

period)

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SEVERITY

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Etiology

* Lesch-Nyhan

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 Treatment

Pharmacological Non pharmacological

Treatment treatment

Antipsychotics Behavioral Strategies

Antidepressants Social Programs

Neuroleptics

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Learning, Communication, &
Motor Disorders

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 Inadequate development in specific area of
academic, language, speech skills

 Not due to mental retardation, autism, a

demonstrable physical disorder or a deficient
educational opportunities

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 Disorder Description
Language Persistent difficulties in language use & acquisition in
Disorder speech, written or sign language d/t deficits in
comprehension or production of vocabulary, sentence
structure, or discourse

Speech Sound Persistent difficulty w/ speech sound production that

Disorder interferes w/ speech intelligibility or prevents verbal
communication of messages
Deficits in phonological knowledge of speech sounds
Difficulty coordinating movements of the jaw, tongue,
or lips
Childhood-Onset Disturbance in normal fluency & time pattering of
Fluency Disorder speech (ex. Sound syllable repetition or pauses within
words)

Social Difficulties in pragmatics or social use of language &

(Pragmatic) nonverbal communication in naturalistic contexts
Communication Symptoms are not better explained by ASD,ID, or low
disabilities in the domains of word structure & grammar
Disorder
or general cognitive ability
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Causes

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 Motor Disorders

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 Disorder Description

Tourette’s Disorder Both multiple motor and one or more vocal tics
that have been present at some time during the
illness

Persistent Motor or Single motor OR vocal tics, persistent for at least

Vocal Tic Disorder 1 year, and with onset before age 18

Stereotypic Repetitive, seemingly driven, and apparently

Movement purposeless motor behavior causing clinically
significant distress or functional impairment
Disorder

Developmental Motor performance that is substantially below

Coordination expected levels. Given the person’s
chronologic age and previous opportunities for
Disorder skill acquisition
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 Genetic and biological causes

 Dysfunction of dopamine systems

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Treatment

 Atypical antipsychotic drugs

 Behavioral therapy
 Habit reversal therapy

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 Case 1
Anthony is a 6-year old male referred for evaluation due to
difficulties adjusting to kindergarten. His mother reports that
Anthony dislikes going to school and will often cry or say he
is sick in order to avoid going to school. Anthony’s mother
did not report any pregnancy or delivery complications
and reported that Anthony met all developmental
milestones at an average or faster than average rate. She
reported that he has always been a very picky eater and is
also fussy about his clothing (e.g., doesn’t like to have tags
on his clothes, won’t wear shirts that aren’t soft cotton). She
noted that Anthony began speaking at an early age (1 ½)
and that he is a very verbal child who likes to talk about his
interest in cars. She noted with pride that Anthony can talk
for hours about different types of cars and car engines.
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 Case 1
She noted that his favorite activity is to play with matchbox
cars at home and that he spends hours lining up his cars
and building small cities and gets upset if his play is
disrupted (i.e., his younger brother picks up a car without
permission). Anthony’s teacher has noted that Anthony
tends to play by himself, seldom engages with other
children, and gets agitated if other children attempt to
engage in play with him. She noted that he is doing well
academically but seems disinterested in participating in
class activities. For example, when asked a question in class
he will either remain silent or respond with a comment that
is minimally related to the question. Anthony’s mother
reports that she feels he is “bored” at school since he is
already starting to read and other children are still learning
their numbers and colors.
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 Case 2
John is a 6-year old male referred due to aggressive behavior at
school. He reportedly is aggressive towards peers and
occasionally staff at school, hitting and biting on occasion,
mostly when asked to stop one activity to move to another or
when another child takes a toy he is playing with. His mother
reports a normal pregnancy/delivery and did not report any
developmental delays with the exception of a delay in speech;
John did not begin talking in sentences until he was 3 ½. John
displays a great deal of hyperactive and impulsive behavior both
at home and at school. He tends to make minimal eye contact
with others, in part due to his high activity level. John’s mother
reports that he enjoys playing with a range of toys and will often
include his younger brother in imaginary play, however he is
often aggressive towards his younger brother. John is currently
receiving speech services at school to help him to expand his
vocabulary and to work on pronunciation difficulties. John seems
to prefer to play by himself at school and other children tend to
avoid him due to his history of aggressive behavior.
Prepared by: Justine Marie Beltran