Neurodevelopmental disorder
Neurodevelopmental disorders are a group of mental conditions affecting the development of the nervous system, which includes the brain and spinal cord.
According to the American Psychiatric Association Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, (DSM-5) published in 2013, these conditions generally appear in early childhood, usually before children start school, and can persist into adulthood.
All of these disorders and their levels of impairment exist on a spectrum, and affected individuals can experience varying degrees of symptoms and deficits, despite having the same diagnosis.
While its severity and specific manifestations vary widely across the spectrum, autism generally affects a person's ability to understand and connect with others and adapt to everyday situations.
[24] Difficulties in self-regulation such as time management, inhibition and sustained attention may cause poor professional performance, relationship difficulties and numerous health risks,[25][26] collectively predisposing to a diminished quality of life[27] and a direct average reduction in life expectancy of 13 years.
There are neurodevelopmental research projects examining potential new classifications of disorders including: The multitude of neurodevelopmental disorders spans a wide range of associated symptoms and severity, resulting in different degrees of mental, emotional, physical, and economic consequences for individuals, and in turn families, social groups, and society.
[2] The development of the nervous system is tightly regulated and timed; it is influenced by both genetic programs and the prenatal environment.
Any significant deviation from the normal developmental trajectory early in life can result in missing or abnormal neuronal architecture or connectivity.
[36] Because of the temporal and spatial complexity of the developmental trajectory, there are many potential causes of neurodevelopmental disorders that may affect different areas of the nervous system at different times and ages.
One typical immune reaction in infants and children is PANDAS,[47] or Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorders Associated with Streptococcal infection.
Susceptibility to these immune diseases may be genetically determined,[49] so sometimes several family members may have one or both of them following an epidemic of Strep infection.
Protozoa like Plasmodium[50] or Toxoplasma which can cause congenital toxoplasmosis with multiple cysts in the brain and other organs, leading to a variety of neurological deficits.
The most common nutritional cause of neural tube defects is folic acid deficiency in the mother, a B vitamin usually found in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and milk products.
Jones and D.W. Smith of the University of Washington Medical School in Seattle found a pattern of "craniofacial, limb, and cardiovascular defects associated with prenatal onset growth deficiency and developmental delay" in children of alcoholic mothers, now called fetal alcohol syndrome, It has significant symptom overlap with several other entirely unrelated neurodevelopmental disorders.
[63] Brain trauma in the developing human is a common cause (over 400,000 injuries per year in the US alone, without clear information as to how many produce developmental sequellae)[64] of neurodevelopmental syndromes.
Common causes of congenital injury are asphyxia (obstruction of the trachea), hypoxia (lack of oxygen to the brain), and the mechanical trauma of the birth process itself.
[67] Neurodevelopmental disorders are diagnosed by evaluating the presence of characteristic symptoms or behaviors in a child, typically after a parent, guardian, teacher, or other responsible adult has raised concerns to a doctor.
