PERCEPTUAL, MOTOR AND ATTENTIONAL DEFICITS IN SIX‐YEAR‐OLD CHILDREN, EPIDEMIOLOGICAL ASPECTS

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Abstract
SUMMARY: A total population study of 4797 six‐year‐old children attending the public pre‐schools in the city of Göteborg (Gothenburg) has been carried out. A questionnaire with 34 questions about MBD‐related problems was distributed to all pre‐school teachers. Three thousand four hundred and forty‐eight questionnaires were completed. Factor analysis of the questionnaire and empirical results from a pilot study provided the basis for selecting for further study children with pre‐school signs and symptoms suggestive of MBD. Neurological, psychiatric and psychological assessment of 82 children with, and 59 children without, pre‐school symptoms of MBD revealed that in the index groups 41% of the children, and in the control group 3% of the children, had MBD. Extrapolation procedures gave a total population frequency of 1.2% with severe MBD and a further 5.9% with mild‐moderate MBD. A very large questionnaire refusal rate (28%) is discussed. The relevance of the calculated frequency figures, especially as regards the mild‐moderate MBD category, cannot be properly evaluated until long‐term follow‐up has been completed.

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